


It’s Only Instinct

by NinesKnives



Category: La casa de papel | Money Heist (TV), ビースターズ | BEASTARS
Genre: Blood, Depictions of Death, Eventual Smut, F/F, F/M, Father issues, Gen, LEWD, M/M, Multi, Murder, Sad, Torture, depictions of smoking, past trauma, sexual activity, traumatic events
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-15
Updated: 2021-01-29
Packaged: 2021-03-04 22:01:12
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 43
Words: 72,016
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25273576
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NinesKnives/pseuds/NinesKnives
Summary: Louis is a troubled teenager with a dark past, but will it take somebody unexpected to bring him through to light, or is another animal going to endanger their lives as they battle high school, emotions, trauma, relationships, family issues...just to name a few?
Relationships: Bill/Pina (BEASTARS), I really don't know yet., Legosi/Louis (BEASTARS), Legosi/Professor (BEASTARS/La Casa De Papel)
Comments: 81
Kudos: 106





	1. Louis

**Author's Note:**

> DISCLAIMER: I don’t own any of the characters in this. I will adapt some, sure but I do not hold any legal rights over any characters so please don’t sue me because I’m not trying to do anything wrong. Paru Itagaki and Alex Pina hold the rights to the characters within this fanfiction, separately and respectively and that's all it is, a fanfiction for you all to enjoy.

Louis, third and first person POV.

_Come on, Number Four. Why bother fighting? You know that we’re just going to restrain you, then drug you and toss you back into your cell. It’s happened many times and frankly, I’m tired of your childish outbursts. Oh, and eat your salad. I don’t want to waste it._

_Let go of me, I hate you!_

_Now now, that’s not a polite way to treat somebody, let alone one of my employees who has always been there to help you. What would your parents think, if they could hear you know?_

_They can’t hear me, they never heard me! They left me here with a nasty piece of work like you as a ‘parent’._

_You’re right. They won’t come to save you. Let me explain why they won’t. They gave you up and left you in the black market. They didn’t want to take care of you. I paid for you. I own you. You’re my son now, and I will not tolerate your insolence by disrespecting me IN MY OWN HOME! Especially after I personally requested that you have this meal with me. Well? Do you have anything to say for yourself, Number Four?_

_I’m sorry, father. I’ll be better._

_That’s what I thought. Can I trust you to go to your own room peacefully or is force needed?_

_No, sir. I can go there by myself, if you will allow me to be excused from the dinner table please, sir?_

_You may. Cause me any more issues, and I will not hesitate to take you back to the cage. Goodnight, Number Four._

_Thank you for the meal and for your benevolence. Goodnight, father._

_~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_

_That memory always sticks in my head, I know I’m just a number. Maybe one day, I’ll be able to prove that I’m worth more than he thinks I am, through my own means. ___

__Louis sat up in his bed, covered in sweat. It wasn’t a nightmare so he wasn’t panting for breath. Well, not like a usual nightmare anyway. It was just more of a kind of dream that you dislike but can tolerate without too many issues. He looked around the room just to be certain that he was alone before he climbed out of bed quietly._ _

___Ugh, now I need to change these sheets. They’re soaked, and laundry day was yesterday _, he thought to himself. He also briefly chastised himself for allowing his memories to affect him, and he tore the sheets and blanket off the bed, which were replaced within a couple of minutes. The cervid noticed that it was still dark outside, so he checked his alarm clock. 4:37AM. As if on cue, he yawned quietly and then took a fairly large mouthful of water from a glass next to his bed. Truth be told, he was getting tired of waking up sweating during the night. Warm or cold weather, it wouldn’t matter. And it would always end up being boring. He wouldn’t be able to go back to sleep and would lie awake for hours. It seemed like tonight was going to be one of those nights. If his father hadn’t taken his phone, he could...go and get his phone. His tiredness seemed to have drained itself from his body just like his sweat because he was back on his feet and into slippers, peering out of his bedroom door. Nobody’s there. Louis cautiously stepped out into the hallway, closing his door as quietly as possible. He knew where his father would usually keep his phone because it was where all of his other confiscated items were kept. Louis tiptoed his way to the elevator with minimal difficulty. Even though the hallway was darker than his room, he was able to make out the light from the elevator so he just moved towards that. He let out a quiet exhale when his feet touched the cold flooring but tried to not let it bother him. _Let’s see, floor four. What is with this guy and the number four? _Nevertheless, he pushed the button and patiently waited. It was only a few seconds before he reached the fourth floor and the moment he got out of the elevator, it closed behind him and left him in almost darkness. Thankfully, he’d walked this route blindfolded many times so it was just the same as that and sure enough, he found his way to his father’s desk. The elevator opened straight into the office so there were no long corridors to worry about on this floor. His eyesight wasn’t the best in the dark but he pulled the drawers open and fumbled around until he felt a familiar object.  
“Ah, here it is.” He put it into his slipper, annoyed at himself for wearing only slippers. Lucky for him, nobody was around to see the show. He felt cold and he was back in his room shortly with no issue. Door locked and sat on the freshly made bed, he unlocked it and started looking through his messages.____ _ _

_______So many notifications, but nobody seemed to care about how I feel. All they want is to see me shining bright like the star they think I am. ____ _ _ _ _ _

________He tapped away at his screen, playing some little games for a while and before he even knew it, the sun was coming through the window. He looked at the time and sighed._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_________Father’s going to know that I took my phone, and he will be unhappy. Oh well. I should probably get some rest. ____ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Louis put the device inside of a book and then slid it under his bed before rolling under the sheets, trying to fall asleep once more._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________A few hours later on, there was a knock at the door, which was briefly opened._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“Good morning, sir. It’s a lovely day.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________In entered a young black and white panda, one of his eyes surrounded by dark fur. He was pushing a breakfast cart with him and he was wearing the standard butler outfit for the Horns Conglomerate. The smell of food almost immediately filled the room, breakfast was always the most appealing meal of the day._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“Good morning, Leo. It is a fine day, you’re correct. I just wish that I could experience it like a normal animal.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Leo simply smiled and carried the tray over to Louis in bed and placed it on his lap._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“Today, we have toasted rye bread with a selection of condiments such as strawberry jam, marmalade, honey or chocolate, which I prepared myself. You also have a bowl of celery sticks under this hand towel. Your father doesn’t like me doing this but I know how much you enjoy your celery. You have a variety of coffee, berry tea, Earl Grey, English Breakfast and normal leaves picked from the allotment. Milk, cream and sugar is on the side.” He pulled out a small tray underneath the actual dinner tray and Louis looked at it wide eyed. “I saw you take your mobile device last night. I can’t say I agree with it, but I’m simply a butler and a chef and I know to keep my mouth shut. You’ll need this if you are to keep it.” On the hidden tray was a plug as well as two charger cables, in case one of them broke. “Keep these hidden whenever your father is about. Now, is there anything else I can do for you?” He stepped back, placing a napkin on Louis’s lap._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“That will be all. Thank you, Leo. You’re my only sanity in this place.” There was a twinge of sadness in his voice, but he held a small smile. Leo returned the smile and left the tray in the room to collect later, leaving Louis to his breakfast._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

___________That smells intoxicating. I suppose I better plug in my phone while I eat. ____ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________An hour had passed since Louis started eating and he laid in bed, crunching onto a stick of celery when his phone vibrated._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_____________Who the hell could that be? ____ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________He reached over and unplugged his phone, swiping the screen and he looked at the number. It wasn’t one he recognised._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________”Good morning, Louis. I do not approve of you stealing your phone out of my desk. I wish to speak with you in my office as quickly as you can.” ____ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_________________Oh fuck _, the cervid thought. He climbed out of bed and got dressed, biting down on one more piece of celery before making his way to his fathers office.__ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________________A tall brown bear stood outside the door, a handgun holstered. He seemed menacing enough without the gun, Louis had always believed._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________________“Good morning, sir. Your father is expecting you.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________________He opened the door and Louis entered the room slowly, standing a few feet away from the desk he stole from only six hours ago._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________________“Good morning, father.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________________“Good morning, Louis.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________________An awkward silence was held for a solid minute, where the two deer simply stared at each other when Oguma broke it._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________________“I’ve added a lock to my office door and my desk. There will be an armed security detail posted outside at all times. In spite of your thievery, and I raised you better than that, I have decided to let you keep your device. However, in turn, I want something in return. I want your respect and loyalty. I want you to stop thieving from me. I will not tolerate this a second time around. If it happens again, I will destroy your device in front of you and I will keep you locked in your room at all times, with another member of armed security authorised to use force if necessary. Now get out of my sight.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________________Oguma didn’t look up from his desk once he started talking, he was too busy writing something down in one of the big books on his desk. Louis didn’t expect any different, he tended to ignore him whenever they spoke, or rather, whenever Oguma reprimanded him._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________________“Of course, father. I am sorry for my behaviour. I will accept any consequences should you choose, and thank you.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________________With that, Louis turned away and left the office. Oguma didn’t even glance at him as he left to go back to his room._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________________A/N: I have a Discord server set up! It’s an absolute mess and a work in progress, but bear with me! https://discord.gg/Xxs5KSW_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _


	2. Legosi

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, I don’t own any characters so please don’t sue me.

First and third person, Legosi’s POV.

“Legosi, wake up! I’ve got something to show you!”

The grey wolf opened his eyes and yelped, finding Jack poking his head through the curtains on his bunk.

“Jeez, you scared me! What is it?”

Jack pulled away and Legosi followed, climbing out of bed. The labrador stood at the window, staring out.

“It’s such a lovely night. Look at the moon, dude.”

Legosi sighed. You always try to get me to howl, Jack. Not happening. If the moon’s out like that...what time is it?

“Jack. What time is it?” He said with a hint of annoyance in his tone.

“Uh, only about 4am!”

“Really?! We have school starting again in a few hours, I’m going back to bed.” Without saying anything else, Legosi climbed back into bed and pulled the covers over him. He looked at his phone for a few minutes, reading through BeastBook.

Oh, Louis is online. I should probably remind him that school starts soon.

He started typing on his screen.

Leg: “Hello.”

He waited for a few moments and then his phone vibrated.

Lou: “What do you want?”

Leg: “Just letting you know that school starts again in a few hours, will you be coming back?”

Lou: “I know it does.”

-Louis is offline.-

Well, that’s helpful. At least I told him, if he’s late then that’s his fault.

Mizuno, Collot, Durham and Voss were heard to be snoring from the other side of the room. They weren’t loud, but you could hear them. Legosi didn’t mind, he liked the background noise. His rhino beetle occasionally chirped and scuttled about in its cage/box and soon enough, the entirety of room 701 was asleep.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Legosi walked into the drama club, greeting his classmates who he hadn’t seen all summer. Kai the mongoose walked over to him, waving.

“Yo, Legosi! Did you know that we have a new teacher coming in?”

Oh, really? Since when? What happened to Dom, it Louis? Oh, Dom’s over there. Maybe he passed over leadership of the club.

“No, I wasn’t aware of this.”

As if on cue, the doors opened and a gazelle walked in. He was wearing a finely ironed shirt, black tie and a waistcoat. He had a pair of reading glasses perched on his nose, and a dark tuft of fur between his horns and it seemed like he had a beard where some dark fur was underneath his mouth and around his jawline. He approached the front of the room and placed his briefcase down next to some lights.

“Good morning everybody. I will be taking over the drama club, and I’ve heard good things about you all. I will be assessing your general knowledge of sound, lighting and acting today within your files, and I want to speak to each and every one of you individually in the office. You may call me Professor. It is a pleasure to meet all of you, and I hope that we can all become friends, with mutual benefits to our friendships. And no, nothing like that.” With that, he disappeared into the office. He carried a soft Italian accent.

“Oh, hello. May I ask what you are doing in my office?”

Everybody’s heads snapped around to look at Louis, who was leaning against the door, arms folded.

Professor cleared his throat and pushed his glasses up.

“You must be Louis. I want to congratulate you on your acting skills, your performance during Adler last year was quite gripping.”

“Yeah, yeah, I don’t care. Why are you in my office?”

Professor stepped out of the room and approached Louis and whispered in his ear before walking back into the office, grabbing his briefcase on the way. Louis simply stood there staring and when the door closed, he sighed and left the room again. The tension was so thick in the room that it would withstand an atomic war with minimal damage.

One class member commented on how “cute the Professor is”, and her friends agreed with her. Everybody broke off and started to get to work, Legosi climbing a ladder to check out the lighting. He started playing with some cables, plugging them in and unplugging them again, altering the colour gradients and positions. Kai was called into the office first.

“Oi, dog.”

Legosi almost jumped out of his skin when Louis came right behind him and tapped him on the shoulder. He gathered his breath quickly and turned around.

“Why did you message me about coming in today? Do you think that I’m going to skip, or did you just want to eat me?”

Legosi shook his head frantically.

“N-no, of course not! I just wanted to know what we would be doing today...although I didn’t know that we would be getting a new teacher.”

Louis sighed again.

“Me neither, but there we go. I don’t trust him.”

“Legosi, come in here please!”

Legosi simply smiled at Louis before climbing the ladder, walking over to the office door.


	3. Chapter Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is going to be longer, but it will be set within an interview for the most of it.

First and third person, Legosi POV.

Legosi closed the door behind himself before approaching the Professor.

“Please, sit down.”

The wolf sat down and placed his paws on his lap and the Professor closed a book, pushing his glasses back up.

“What is your name?”

“Legosi.”

“How old are you?”

“I am 19 years old.”

“It states in your file that you were able to capture your classmates’ killer last year. How did you do this?”

Legosi gulped, trying to think about the events. Truth be told, he didn’t want to address it again. His friend died...which is understandable why he didn’t want to talk about it.

“I...I knew that it was somebody within the drama club. I had to figure out who it would have been. I don’t really want to talk about it because it’s hard to talk about, but it was a bear named Riz. We ended up having a fight and I beat him, and then he was arrested.”

“I see. So you like to keep memories and emotions in reserve when you feel it needs to be kept, yet you are in a drama club. Why is that?”

What is he doing, interrogating me? Who is he?

“Because I wanted to be an actor, but I was placed onto the lighting. I don’t like to stand out, especially with my fangs. I don’t want other animals to see me as a threat, so I’m happy to stay out of the way and let the better actors entertain the audience.”

Professor nodded, lighting a cigarette. He offered Legosi one, but the wolf refused. He also opened up another book and started writing in it.

“What do you mean by ‘the better actors’? Have you been told that you are a bad actor?”

“W-well...no...but-“

“But nothing, Legosi. I have seen your skills with last year’s performance of Adler. I think that you did a brilliant job, especially with the way that you beat the living shit out of Bill.” He took a large drag on his cigarette and continued to smoke while he and Legosi conversed.

Legosi thought back to the fight that they had on stage, in front of hundreds of their peers. He thought about the vial of blood, the scars on his back and how Louis saved him from becoming a wolf kebab.

“I...thank you, I think.”

“It is definitely a compliment. I believe that you have strong potential within this class, and I will be reviewing your position within the club. Now, you’re a large grey wolf. Why do you act so shy, you are aware that you could be a little more outgoing and nobody would hate you for it as that’s what your species is known for? You filed down your claws and you haven’t shown me your fangs once, even while speaking.”

Legosi looked down at his claws and mentally thanked himself for filing them down.

“I do not wish to pose as a threat. Carnivores are seen in a bad light within our society and I don’t want to add to the stigma that we are all killers.”

“Come on, Legosi. All carnivores are natural killers, whether you like it or not. It’s in your blood, I’m afraid and it’s in mine too. I assume that since you are not in prison, you haven’t killed anybody. That’s good...but have you ever eaten meat?”

The wolf was reminded of the time when he pounced on Haru, the small white rabbit, hunting her in the darkness. He remembered her scent, the feeling of her fur, he could almost taste her fear...and then Louis broke his leg.

“I have never eaten meat in my life, and I do not wish to do so. I’m happy with eating vegetables and meat free dishes. It’s healthy and I feel good for it.”

Professor pushed his glasses up again and stubbed our the cigarette, blowing the smoke towards the window.

“Not allowed to smoke inside, but I trust that you aren’t going to tell. I admire your willingness to refuse meat, I’m just curious to see how long you can last.”

Legosi took this time to ask a question, one that he was very curious of.

“Professor, with all respect, may I ask your age?”

Professor smiled and took his glasses off, folding them and neatly placing them on his desk.

“I am 23 years old, Legosi. I graduated a college in Italy just before the summer and I managed to get myself a job here. Principal Gon was quite happy to take on a young teacher as he believes that I will be able to connect with you all better.”

He’s only a few years older than me?! That’s...insane. He seems to be very well esteemed.

“Now, I need to ask a few more questions. You are not required to answer these, but I need to ask them anyway as it is part of the AEA of this year, a new law.”

Legosi looked at him, quizzically.

“AEA?”

“Yes. Animal Equality Act. Let us begin. I have your age so I will mark that down already, and I assume that you are a male.” Legosi nodded. 

He took out a pen and folded over a sheet of paper.

“Can you tell me your religion?”

“I do not believe in religion.” ~~scritch~~

“Do you have any medical issues that the school and myself should be aware of?”

“Not that I know of.” ~~scritch~~

“Do you suffer from any mental ailments, diagnosed or not?”

“I...occasionally get waves of depression and anxiety but that’s it.” ~~scritchy scratch~~

“What is your sexuality?”

Legosi sat there for a moment, thinking. He had never really considered it before as he always focussed on studying.

“I do not wish to answer that.” ~~tick~~

“Are you in any financial issues?”

“No, I am not.”

This is DEFINITELY more of an interrogation. The Professor stopped writing and is now just looking at me like this is a normal friendly chat...

“Any relatives, or next of kin that I can contact in the event of an accident?”

“An accident?” Legosi gulped.

“A medical or legal incident. I don’t believe I need to say more.”

“My grandfather, Gosha. His contact details are already on the school system.”

“Alright. What about your parents?”

Oh.

“I do not wish to answer that.”

Legosi could swear that there was a small hint of sadness in Professors eyes as his face softened a little, hearing the wolfs answer.

“I won’t ask about that again. Are you in full time education or do you have part time employment?”

“Full time education.”

“Alright. Thank you for your time, Legosi. Please go outside and send in...”

He flicked about some sheets of paper and moved a book before opening and reading one.

“...Pina, the dall sheep, please.”

Legosi stood up and left the room, walking over to Pina.

While he waited, the Professor lit another cigarette and blew some smoke out.

“Interesting kid.”

After Pina went into the office and closed the door, Louis approached Legosi.

“What was that about?”

“I don’t know. It seemed like an interrogation more than an interview, but he just wanted to know about me...even though he did ask some rather personal questions. What did he say to you earlier?”

Louis crossed his arms and began to walk away.

“Nothing.”

Legosi’s eyes followed him for a few moments before he climbed the ladder again, going back to his work.

A/N: I have a Discord server set up! It’s an absolute mess and a work in progress, but bear with me! https://discord.gg/Xxs5KSW


	4. Chapter Four

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don’t own the characters. Don’t sue me. DISCORD SERVER: https://discord.gg/Xxs5KSW

First and third person, Louis POV

Louis was cleaning up the dishes in his own room, humming a tune along to the music playing. He was grateful that he was able to get his own private room, but when your father’s extremely rich, nothing is too far out of reach. He didn’t like to be around other animals for too long, he had very different views and ideals about society to them. He hated society and everything about it, and he DESPISED the Back Alley Market. He thought about the number branded on his foot, and he felt his anger rise within him. Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain in his hand.

“Ah, fuck...”

He pulled his hand out of the water, which was now slowly turning red. He stared at the slice spreading across his palm, the blood dripping into the sink. Louis held his hand there and ducked into a cupboard under the sink and pulled out a small cloth, wrapping his hand in it, wincing at the pain. When he was alone, he wasn’t afraid to show his pain. The cervid took his apron off and walked over to his medical kit which he always kept on the kitchen side in case he had an accident like this. He opened it up and pulled out some antiseptic wipes and a bandage. Laying his arm and hand on the side, he unwrapped the cloth and placed it underneath the wound to allow any loose blood to soak into it. Louis dabbed the cut with a wipe, grimacing slightly and very quickly rolled the bandage around his hand, tucking the end underneath another layer to hold it in place. He walked into the living room, which was clearly more decorated and fancier than the other students rooms and grabbed his black, spike laden leather jacket. He then donned some black skinny jeans and some punk boots.

“The dishes aren’t exactly going anywhere,” he said to himself.

He locked the door behind him and walked outside, taking his phone out.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Louis sat down on the fountain wall, the moonlight once again illuminating him. He took a deep breath of fresh air and felt calm, knowing that he wasn’t back at the Horns Conglomerate. He opened his phone and pressed shuffle on some music, the rock sounds filling the air, but not loud enough to cause a disturbance...just enough to distract him from his own life. He reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a packet of cigarettes and a black flip lighter before lighting one, taking a large drag. He breathed out the smoke, instant satisfaction kicking in.

(A/N, I’m not promoting smoking so if you don’t smoke, don’t do it. It’s costly and your lungs are in for a bad time.)

Louis listened to the lyrics and waggled his fingers in the water, swishing about gently. After a couple of minutes and a song change, he laid down on the side of the wall and submerged most of his arm in the water, welcoming the cold liquid on his fur and skin.

_Look at this one, how old is he?_

_He’s about five years old, sir._

_What about his parents?_

_We don’t know, we found him here. I’m sure that there are documents for his abandonment around here somewhere, but I’m uninformed about it._

_Shouldn’t you be more informed about the meat you’re selling?_

_Yes, I should be. My apologies, sir._

_It’s fine. What is the black mark on his foot? Bring him here._

_Sure...come here. Hey, stop kicking, you little shit!_

_Is he regularly violent?_

_Yeah he-ow, you fuck! Take that, that’ll teach you to not bite! Fuck, he drew blood. I’ll be right back. Beat the living shit out of him if you need to._

_Of course. Hey there, lad. What’s your name?_

_..._

_Look, I’m not going to hurt you unless you provoke me. What is your name?_

_..._

_Can you not talk?...ah...alright. Can you write it down?...no?...alright. Let me see your foot. Four...your name is Number Four?_

_M-mmhm..._

_I see._

_How’s the kid, he attack you?_

_No, he hasn’t. He’s quiet._

_He hasn’t spoken once since he’s been here, but he is very protective of the others in his cage downstairs._

_I see. I’ve seen enough. I’ll call you. Good day._

_Good day, sir! I look forward to hearing back from you! Alright, come on you fuckin’ brat. Looks like you’re going to be somebody’s dinner sooner than we thought. ___

__Louis was snapped out of the memory by some footsteps and he turned to his side to see a shadow approaching him._ _

__“Hey, Louis. What’re you doing out here?”_ _

__Oh, it’s Legosi. I could ask you the same question._ _

__“Doing backflips with the chief of police. What does it look like I’m doing?”_ _

__“That’s why I’m asking you.”_ _

__“Just having some time by myself. Why are you out here?”_ _

__“I heard the music, us canines have very good hearing.“_ _

__“So I’ve heard. I can’t see you very well, but you can see me exceptionally well. Finally come to predate me?”_ _

__Legosi sighed and sat on the stone floor a few feet away._ _

__“Why do you keep saying that...? No, I came to investigate where the music was coming from. Curiosity, that’s all.”_ _

__They sat there in silence for a few minutes._ _

__“The moon’s really nice tonight, isn’t it?”_ _

__“Yes.”_ _

__“Do you come out here often?”_ _

__“No.”_ _

__“What about-“_ _

__“What are you trying to do, dog?”_ _

__Legosi looked hurt for a moment._ _

__“I...I’m just trying to be kind.”_ _

__Louis turned the music off and sat up, his arm still pretty drenched but he didn’t care._ _

__“Kindness gets you nowhere in this world. Sure, you don’t get attacked right away but somebody will take advantage of you for your kindness.”_ _

__“Is that why you’re always nasty to me and every other carnivore?”_ _

__“Yes, and no. I’m nasty to everybody. But that’s not why I’m nasty to everybody. It’s got nothing to do with you anyway.”_ _

__“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to pry.”_ _

__Louis took out another cigarette, considering that he submerged the first one in the fountain and he made a mental note to pick it out. He lit it and took a big drag, blowing the smoke above his head and antlers._ _

__“It’s whatever. Animals seem to think that they’re entitled to know everything about my life, and they’re wrong. I get questioned about what I’m doing, where I’m going, who I’m fucking or even why I’m wearing something that they disapprove of. It’s got absolute fuck all to do with anybody.”_ _

__Knowing that he just started talking about himself, he stopped himself and put his phone in his pocket._ _

__“I’m going home.”_ _

__“Louis, wait. What did the Professor say to you earlier?”_ _

__Louis stood up and turned away from Legosi, still puffing on his cigarette._ _

__“He told me to watch myself.”_ _

__And with that, he left the wolf sat there on the stone floor alone in the moonlight. And he felt bad for doing that._ _


	5. Chapter Five

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don’t own characters. Don’t sue me. Discord server. https://discord.gg/Xxs5KSW
> 
> Not creative with the chapter titles.

Third person POV, Louis, Legosi and Professor.

Everybody was once again packed in the drama club hall, ready for the new lesson to start.

“Good afternoon everybody. I have set out some specific roles and positions that I want you all to do your best with. Some of you have the same, some of you have different positions. We will be working on a new play that I wish to implement. I have permission from principal Gon to do this and it is to raise awareness for identity and sexuality within todays society. Some of you may be put into uncomfortable situations but I expect you as actors to understand that this is simply a play and you are to fulfil your roles to the best of your abilities. Bill, you are on lighting. Aoba, you are to work on outfit design. Pina, you are to work with Aoba.”

Pina let out a laugh and clapped his hands.

“That’s because I’m fuckin’ phenomenal, baby!”

The Professor simply pushed his glasses up, a little irritated at being interrupted.

“Yes, quite. Legosi, you are working with Louis, Juno and Kai as the actors. Dom, you are to work with Bill on lighting, actually. I will be handing out scripts to the actors and I expect you to read them as soon as you get them. I want to start practicing today. Everybody else, you will be receiving information about what I specifically expect you to do for this. I do not want complaints. I have given you these roles based on the interviews you have given and there is nothing that you can say that’ll change my mind about this. I have full confidence in each and every one of you. This play is not going to be very long so you don’t have to worry about doing this for too long.” 

The Professor started to hand out the scripts to everybody and once they were all given out, they were told to read them.

Legosi scanned over his, becoming a little panicked.

“I...I’m in a same sex relationship with Louis?”

An extremely loud ‘WHAT?!’ was heard from across the room from a certain, very pissed off deer.

“Are you fucking serious, Professor?!”

He pushed up his glasses again and held out one of his hands in a ‘don’t try me’ position.

“I am as serious as death. Get to work.”

He disappeared into the office while everyone stared at their scripts in dismay.

Louis flicked through the pages, reading quite quickly and his face turned a little pale.

“Oh, so I play the role as a nasty homophobe who’s dating Juno?!”

The female wolf looked over to Kai, a little hurt as he put emphasis on ‘Juno’ as well as ‘homophobe’.

“H-hey...what’s wrong with doing the role with me? We’re not going to be dating, you know.”

“God, I seriously don’t wanna fuckin’ do this...”

Louis stepped forward. Although he was pretty pissed off, he knew his responsibilities.

“Listen up! Everybody has been given a role here! We’re now the actors for this play as as much as we don’t like it, we need to do our duty as actors and FUCKING ACT! You think you have it worst off? I’m dating a carnivore and I have to fucking kiss him! DO YOUR DAMN ROLE!”

Legosi paled at hearing part of this, and it was his turn to scream out ‘WHAT?!’ to the class. No, this can’t be right, he thought.

Louis managed to persuade everybody into doing their roles, so they all shut up, stopped complaining and got to work.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Louis stood in front of Legosi, looking surprisingly calm. He held the script in his hand and so did the wolf in front of him.

“I want the kiss part over and done with firstly because I want to rehearse that a minimal amount of times.”

The Professor nodded.

“Of course. Do this part right and you will not have to rehearse it until a later date. Everybody gather round and watch. You both need an audience to determine whether you can do this on stage.”

“Of course.”

“Start now.”

Legosi and Louis both looked at each other awkwardly and took a deep breath.

“That was fun, wasn’t it?”

“Yeah, I had a really good time! I had no idea that arcades could be so fun!”

“Legosi, I need to talk to you.”

“Of course, Lou. What’s up?”

“It’s hard to explain, really. I’m regretting saying it and I haven’t even said it yet.”

Legosi put a hand on Louis’ shoulder.

“Hey, come on. You’re my best friend, you can tell me anything. I’m not going to judge you.”

“Legosi...I...I’m...ugh...I don’t know if I can say this...I’m gay, Legosi, and I like you, more than a friend.”

Legosi nodded and rubbed his face, sighing.

“I understand.”

“I don’t think that you do! I’ve been wanting to tell you this for so long and I couldn’t! Everything about our love is wrong and everybody will hate me for-“

On cue, Legosi leaned in and pecked Louis on the cheek.

“Do you both sincerely believe that THAT is convincing for two people displaying their love to each other for the first time? I want there to be passion, dedication! Try again.”

They both shifted awkwardly and Legosi moved back a little. Louis repeated his lines, but Legosi decided to improvise, thinking about what the Professor said. He placed his finger just in front of Louis’ mouth to get him to stop talking and stepped forward, wrapping one arm around Louis and pulled him into a soft and delicate kiss, one that displayed passion. Both males were surprised at how it felt and Louis put one of his hands onto Legosi’s waist, kissing him back. They held the kiss for a few moments and broke off for half a second, just to kiss again. Once satisfied with their acting, they pulled back. Both of them were extremely red in the face.

“Professor, how was that?”

The Professor simply started clapping, and so did the rest of the class, although it was extremely evident that they were all uncomfortable. In fact, the Professor was the only one who was comfortable.

“That was fantastic. That was brilliant! Well done to you both! I want to see that in the final performance. Louis, I knew that you could pull it off. Legosi, you’ve surprised me. You used the script but improvised a little, I believe because of what I had said. I’m glad that I chose you, because you surpassed my expectations. That should be all for today. All of you are dismissed. Please rehearse your scripts out of class if you can.”

Louis was the first to leave. The moment that the Professor stopped talking, he stormed out of the room. Bill approached Legosi.

“Fucking fag.”

Suddenly, he was hit in the back of the head with something.

“BILL! I will have NONE OF THAT in this class! YOU are the reason that I wanted this play introduced in the first place, because animals like you disgust me. You judge, make fun and criticise others for simply being themselves. Those two were only acting, so I dread to think what you would have done if that was real. If I ever hear you say that or discover that you have said something like that, I will be personally expelling you from this school. Get out of my sight! Everybody else, it’s getting late. Go back to your rooms.”

Rubbing the back of his head, he left the room, embarrassed and a little humiliated. Everybody else left a few moments after, in collective silence.

The Professor walked back into his office, sighing. He sat down at his desk and took his glasses off, placing them on the table. I can’t believe that, he thought. He knew that someone wouldn’t be happy with it, but he wasn’t accounting for genuine homophobic behaviour. He was glad that he didn’t cast Bill for one of those positions.

Louis was stood outside, smoking a cigarette. Fucking hell, he thought. How many more times have I got to do this? Legosi approached him cautiously.

“I’m sorry about that, Louis.”

The cervid took quite a long drag.

“Forget about it. It comes with acting. Just...leave me alone.”

The wolf looked at the ground for a second before walking away, leaving Louis to his thoughts and his cigarette.


	6. Chapter Six

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don’t sue me, not my characters.
> 
> https://discord.gg/Xxs5KSW

A/N: I’ve decided to stop stating whether I’m writing this in first or third perspective. You can all read so you’ll be able to figure it out without me stating it. Thanks for reading IOI. Join my Discord server, link above. I’d love to chat with you all!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Louis stepped into the shower, feeling the hot water soak his fur and face. He felt dirty, especially after kissing Legosi like that. He knew that it was for a performance, but it felt different for some reason. How the fuck was it that Legosi was his first kiss? A MALE CARNIVORE?! He slammed his fist into the wall, screaming as loudly as he could. He looked at his hand, noticing that he didn’t only injure his fingers or crack some tiles but he tore open the cut on his hand from the previous night. He grimaced as the water beneath him slowly turned red with his blood, and it made him slightly dizzy. Louis was fine with blood, just not his own. He looked away from it and he held his hand under the water for a few minutes, until the blood clotted and stopped bleeding. He turned off the shower and wrapped a towel around his waist, going back to the kitchen to fix himself up.

Once all bandaged up again he sat down on the couch, put some music on and he looked at his phone and noticed that he had a text.

Leg: Can we meet up? I need to talk to you.

Lou: Why?

Leg: I want to address what happened earlier.

Lou: We were acting, Legosi.

Leg: I know.

Lou: I’d rather not.

Leg: Alright.

Louis put his phone down and put one some clean clothes, ready for his nightly ritual. He grabbed his jacket and tied up his boots and then left for the fountain. He needed some time outside. He needed some air, but he also needed a fucking cigarette to calm him down. It was only when he reached the fountain, he realised that he would in fact not be calm.

“Legosi? What the hell are you doing here?”

Louis stared at the wolf, sat on the fountain wall. He didn’t look at the deer who stood a few feet away from him.

“You didn’t want to meet me, so I came out here to be by myself. I swear, I didn’t know that you were going to be here.”

“Uh huh. So you just so happened to go to the same place that you saw me yesterday, after asking me to meet up. I don’t believe you at all.”

Legosi stood up and looked directly at Louis.

“How the fuck would I have known that you were coming here, huh? I didn’t put a tracker on you! I didn’t follow you here! If you don’t believe me, ask the Professor!”

Louis took out a cigarette and lit it, ignoring Legosi’s frustration and focussed on his own.

“The Professor, hm? What were you doing with him, practising a kiss?”

“No! He emailed me and asked for me to go to his office because he wanted to talk about my...our performance earlier. He thinks you did a good job, by the way. He also defended you after you left.”

Louis sat down on the wall.

“He defended me...really? You expect me to believe that?! Why the fuck would he?! He doesn’t know me! I bet he doesn’t even know I’m a contender for being the future Beastar!”

“Yeah. After you left, Bill called you, and I quote, a fucking fag, and the Professor threw a pretty big book at him and tore into him for saying that. Like you said, it’s just acting.” Legosi turned around and started to walk away, the final sentence used with malicious intent.

“Legosi, wait.”

Legosi kept on walking and soon enough, disappeared out of sight. Louis chastised himself for being rude and dismissive towards Legosi and finished his cigarette before going back towards his own room, but he had one more smoke on the way.

Neither Legosi, Louis nor the Professor slept that night. The Professor laid there on the couch in the office adjacent to the drama hall and he was re-evaluating his choices with the casting. As the fountain was basically just outside the hall, he heard most of what was said, mainly the shouting. He was a little hurt from what Louis said, but he did his best to dismiss it. He climbed out of bed, or rather, off the couch and sat down at the desk, turning a lamp on and donning his glasses. The gazelle started reading through the scripts and he began to adjust them slightly.

The next day in the hall, Louis didn’t turn up and animals were getting suspicious of a certain wolf.

“Legosi, where’s Louis?”

“I don’t know.”

“I thought that maybe you got a taste of meat. Or after that kiss, maybe you wanted MORE meat.”

“You’re fucking disgusting, Bill. Don’t say that shit about your classmates.”

“Pina is right, Bill. I want you in my office. NOW.” 

Everybody’s heads turned to the Professor, standing quite impatiently. The Bengal tiger slinked into the office and although nobody could make out what was being said, or rather screamed, it was so very evident that the Professor was ripping into Bill, figuratively. After a few minutes, he came out looking as white as Pina.

“Sorry, Legosi.” Bill would say nothing more for the entirety of the lesson. The Professor came out shortly and stood in front of everybody.

“Everyone, I want to address you. I’ve heard your comments towards Legosi, and first off, you all make me feel sick. It is not down to you to make judgements about what has happened, and accusations about such will not be treated kindly. If I catch anybody doing so, you will not be in for a pleasant time. Secondly, Louis will not be taking part in the play as of today. I will be taking his role over and BEFORE ANY OF YOU SAY ANYTHING, I am four years older than Legosi and there will be nothing incriminating happening. We are over the legal age and I have discussed this with principal Gon too and we reached a conclusion. As of right now, I am no longer a teacher at this establishment, but a paid student who guides you all. I will still expect you to treat me the same way that you did yesterday and before I addressed you just now, however.

Everybody in the room all had one collective thought, ‘that’s fucked up’. Then again, the Professor was correct. Everything is perfectly legal. Legosi felt weird about it, that meant that he would have to kiss the Professor...and something only just occurred to him.

“Professor? If you are no longer a teacher here and you’re a student like the rest of us...what is your name?”

The Professor smiled and pushed his glasses up his nose.

“You will discover that in time. For now, I suppose that my name is still Professor to all of you. I am still the leader of the drama club, so let’s get started.”

Legosi sighed as everybody dispersed. How the fuck is it that SO MUCH has happened within such a short amount of time...? We’ve been back here for two days and we gained a teacher, lost them, Louis has done a no show...I fucking KISSED Louis...this is insane. Then again, last year, Tem was killed and me and Louis brought down Riz. Only us, huh?

Louis laid in bed, deciding to have a lazy day considering that he was dismissed from the club and that he didn’t sleep that night. He was angry, sure, but at least he wouldn’t have to kiss Legosi again. He looked at his phone and once he saw that he had no new messages, he rolled over again and went back to sleep...although he knew he needed to talk to Legosi about his behaviour the previous night. He just didn’t know how, or when, or even what to say. Maybe just an apology would suffice for the dog.


	7. Chapter Seven

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don’t sue me, not my characters.
> 
> https://discord.gg/Xxs5KSW

Legosi finished eating his egg sandwich in the cafeteria by himself. He didn’t really have many friends, aside from those in room 701. He always found it difficult to socialise so he decided that keeping to himself when necessary would be...well, necessary. He packed up his lunchbox and his books and left the other animals to talk about their day, eat their food and be merry with one another, something that the wolf didn’t mind missing out on. Upon exiting the room, he found Jack outside talking to one of his friends.

“Oh, hey Legosi! What’re you up to?”

He stood there, a little awkwardly with somebody he didn’t even know being RIGHT there.

“I...I was just going to go to the library to study. What are you up to?”

Thankfully, Jacks friend kindly excused them self from the conversation, which Legosi was grateful for.

“O-oh, well, nothing now. Do you wanna hang out? I’ve barely seen you since we came back.”

Jacks voice held a little bit of sadness or guilt, or something...Legosi couldn’t quite place it but it did indeed make him feel a little guilty for not spending more time with his only childhood friend. Legosi smiled at him.

“Of course we can, where would you like to go?”

The Labrador’s eyes lit up and a HUGE grin spread across his face. He grabbed Legosi’s arm and started moving at a considerably quick speed down the corridor, taking the wolf by surprise.

“I have the perfect spot for us to chill without being interrupted!”

The pair climbed a few flights of stairs and Jack pushed open a door, leading to an abandoned and empty swimming pool on the roof. Legosi was taken aback by this...how did I never know that there was a swimming pool on THE ROOF? Seems dangerous, maybe that’s why they closed it down.

“How did you even find this place?” 

“Oh, you know...I come up here when I want to be alone.”

They both jumped into the desolate pool, which was surprisingly clean and they sat down in the deep end, almost hiding away from everybody else in the world.

“So how are classes going for you?”

What do I even say here...?

“It’s being a little rocky. We have a new teacher...well, DID, and now he’s a student. I’m a main actor in a play, which is always nice, but scary. How about you?”

“Wait wait wait wait wait! You’re the MAIN ACTOR?!”

Legosi smiled and chuckled a little.

“Y-yeah, I am. It’s a play about identity and sexuality within todays society and I think that it’s a good idea, although there are a couple of bumps in it.”

Jack crossed one of his legs over the other, his tail swishing gently behind him. He said nothing, waiting for Legosi to elaborate.

“Jack...can I tell you a secret? Well, it’s not much of a secret, it’s more of a spoiler but it’s also not something that I want to be public knowledge right now.”

His trusty friend nodded frantically. If there was anything that Jack loved, it was a secret. If there was anything MORE that Jack loved, it was one of Legosi’s secrets. The wolf took a deep breath and sighed.

“In my role, I have to kiss somebody. Yesterday...I...I kissed Louis.”

Jack’s eyes went wider than the moon the previous night.

“YOU DID WHAT?! OH MY GOD LEGOSI!! TELL ME EVERYTHING!”

“C-calm down! There’s not much to say, it’s my role and I have to accept that for what it is. It happens, you see actors kiss all the time on television.”

Jack clearly was having none of this. He was WAY too excited, which was evident by his tail flicking around frantically.

“But those actors aren’t my best friend who has never even kisses anyone before! Aahhh, LEGOSI!”

“I’m not done, can I finish?”

“YOU’RE NOT DONE?!”

“No.” Legosi cleared his throat. “Louis was taken out of the role today and he was replaced by the new head of the drama club. We call him Professor.”

“WHAT?! A TEACHER?!”

“CALM DOWN AND LET ME FINISH! He WAS our teacher, but him and Gon came to some kind of twisted arrangement and now he’s my classmate. He’s only a few years older than me and we’re both legal. Plus, we don’t know his actual name. He’s told us to only call him the Professor. Maybe it’s an alias, I don’t know. But now I’ve got to kiss him the same way I kissed Louis...really fuckin’ passionately.”

The wolfs friend was torn between being happy and wanting to throw up. He suddenly turned really serious.

“Legosi...that’s...a really weird situation. You sure that you’re okay to do this? I mean...it’s a bit messed up.”

Legosi let out a half laugh.

“You think? To be honest...I don’t know how to feel. I want this role, so badly. I was devastated last year when Louis put me onto lighting but now I’m actually doing it, I’m not sure. And then there’s the fact that I’ve got to kiss the Professor in front of the entire school. Sure, it’s not as bad as yesterday where it was a same sex carniherni (carnivore and herbivore) kiss, but it’s still weird. I’ve never kissed anybody before and the first time I do, it’s with Louis and it’s for a goddamn play. I’ve never even THOUGHT about having sex or kissing or my sexuality or anything! Jack...what do I do?”

His friend say there and pondered for a moment, looking at the clouds.

“Look at the sky, Legosi. It’s beautiful. It’s so welcoming but on other days, we could have a thunderstorm, or snow. It’s unpredictable, but we don’t judge it for that, right? We enjoy the good, knowing that we will eventually get the bad, but we also know it will be good again. I’d say to follow your heart, dude. Look inside yourself and you’ll see what is beautiful. Think about what you like. Sure, you only know kissing through Louis, but maybe that’s what you’re into. Maybe you like herbivores. Maybe you like dudes. Maybe you like herbivore dudes. People will criticise your for that, definitely but that doesn’t take away the feeling that it shocks your heart, mind and body with.”

Legosi was completely stunned at the wisdom that his friend just parted to him, but he shook his head.

“Jack. I was talking about acting, not my sexuality.”

“I don’t know...maybe I just simply know you better than you think.”

“What are you two mutts talking about?“

Both canines yelped out of shock, almost jumping out of their own fur when Louis suddenly appeared above them.

“N-nothing, I’ll leave you to it!”

Without a moment of hesitation, Jack hurriedly left the roof and slammed the door behind him. Thanks, thought Legosi...although it wasn’t a sarcastic thought. He meant that.

“H-how did you know that we were up here?”

Louis jumped down into the pool and sat a couple of feet away from Legosi.

“I heard him screaming your name, I think the whole school did. It doesn’t sound clean, by the way. Other animals may think that something else was going on. Look, Legosi. I came up here because I wanted to speak to you about last night. It...it was very rude of me to dismiss you like that. You were put in an awkward situation and I didn’t exactly help matters. I’m sorry, and if you want to talk about it or walk off this roof, not literally, then I will not hold it against you.”

Louis pulled out a cigarette and lit it, blowing the smoke out. As per usual, he offered Legosi one. The wolf accepted and Louis lit it for him. Legosi took a drag of it and held it surprisingly well, he didn’t cough at all, which caught Louis off guard. 

(A/N: Again, not promoting smoking. Peer pressure sucks with things like that so stay away from it if you can.)

“I actually wanted to apologise to you about...what happened. I didn’t even warn you, and I’ve never kissed anybody either so I didn’t know what was going on or if I was doing it right.”

The cervid laughed and inhaled more smoke. Legosi did the same.

“You’ve never kissed anybody? For real? Had me convinced otherwise, you’re not bad. Could use work, though. But, I’m listening. I think I’ve spoken enough.”

Legosi felt a strange feeling in his body when Louis complimented the kiss.

“Y-yeah...never...you aren’t bad either. I just...I guess I’m sorry for being the one that you had to kiss. I didn’t ask for the role but there was nothing I could have done, you heard the Professor. I don’t want there to be any hostility between us, well, anymore than there already is because of that. I know that we were just fulfilling our roles as actors but we broke off and I kissed you again. I shouldn’t have done that and I’m not really sure why I did. I don’t think it matters, anyway.”

Louis was taken aback by the final sentence.

“What do you mean?”

“Your role was replaced by the Professor. He’s no longer a teacher, but a ‘paid student’ who runs the club. It’s legal, I think anyways. If Gon approved, then it must be.”

So he’s got to make out with the Professor on stage, huh? Both males took a drag off their cigarettes.

“Legosi. I don’t really care about the kiss if I’m honest, and I don’t mean that in a bad way. It happened and there’s nothing we can do to change it. We have to accept that and move on with our lives, letting something like this take over will just lead to so many complications. I apologise that we had to kiss, I know that it wasn’t easy for you but we can’t change it now. We kissed. End of story. You shouldn’t be the one apologising anyways.”

“Y-yeah...you’re right about all of that, aside from the apologising part. I’ll always apologise for that.”

Louis laughed and it sent shivers down Legosi’s spine.

“That’s because you’re just a shy and sappy dog.”

Said dog chuckled a little, flicking the cigarette away, watching it burn itself out. Louis did the same, but he found himself looking at Legosi instead.

“I’m going to be hosting a little get together. Alcohol, I’ll cater to everybody’s tolerances and such so I don’t poison anybody, a lot of takeaway and not many people. I don’t want a lot of people knowing where I live. It’ll be happening in the next few days and I’ll keep you updated. But for now, we should probably get off the roof. Class will start soon and you shouldn’t be late to that.”

The pair stood up and made their way downstairs, both seemingly feeling better about the discussion, glad that they managed to discuss it. The bell rang and Louis made his way to his room, and Legosi went to one of his other classes.


	8. Chapter Eight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don’t sue me, not my characters.
> 
> WARNING: MENTION OF SUICIDE. PLEASE READ AT OWN RISK.
> 
> https://discord.gg/Xxs5KSW

_Hi mama, I’m back from school!_

_Hello sweetie, how was your day?_

_It was great! I made a new friend! His name’s Jack and he’s a Labrador and he’s really fluffy like me and you! Not like grandpa though! I learned lots of stuff about strawberries, would you like me to pick you some?_

_I would love that. Now come on, help me set the table, dear._

_~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_

_Hello mama, I’m back!_

_Hi Legosi, darling. Did you have a good day?_

_Me and Jack had a fight, but it’s okay. We hugged it out in the end!_

_That explains the mud on your clothes. Alright, go and get changed and bring them down. We’ll discuss more at dinner._

_Okay mama!_

_~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_

_Mama, I’m home!_

_Hey sweetie, how was school today for you?_

_It was good! Mrs Tomi taught me about numbers! They’re really important!_

_That’s good, honey. How’s Jack?_

_He was sick today, but I’m sure I’ll see him tomorrow!_

_I hope he gets better soon, tell him I said hi._

_Okay mama, I will!_

_~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_

_Hi mama! Today was good, I did my first test!_

_That’s wonderful sweetie, how did you do?_

_I think I did really well!_

_I’m proud of you. Let’s order some dinner tonight as a treat for you!_

_Yay!_

_~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_

_Hi momma, I’m back. How was your day?_

_Oh, pretty boring without you around. How was yours?_

_It was good, I really enjoyed trying out new food from different countries!_

_I’m glad to hear that, sweetie! Have you got homework to do?_

_...No..._

_Are you sure?_

_...I’ll do it now..._

_That’s a good boy, Legosi!_

_~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_

_I’m back, mom! Mom?_

_She’s in her room, she’s feeling a little unwell._

_Okay grandpa. Would you like some help cooking dinner?_

_Oh, what a kind boy you are. Come on then._

_~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_

_Mom? Today was bad. The other animals keep thinking that I’m going to hurt them. What’s a predation?_

_Go to your room, Legosi, please._

_But I haven’t done anything wrong!_

_I know sweetie...but please..._

_Alright mom._

_~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_

_Grandpa? Is mom still in her room?_

_I’m afraid so, she thinks that she’ll be able to come out soon though._

_Okay well that’s good, I’m going out to see Jack soon so I won’t be stopping for dinner. I love you grandpa!_

_I love you too, my favourite grandson._

_I’m your only grandson!_

_Heh, I know. That’s why you’re my favourite._

_I love you mom!_

_..._

_~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_

_Mom? Are you there? There are police here, what do they want? Are you in trouble?_

_Legosi, come with me._

_Grandpa, what’s going on?_

_Your mother isn’t coming back out of her room._

_What? Why not? You said ages ago that she’d be better! You lied to me!_

_Legosi, wait, come back!_

_~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_

_Hey mom, it’s me. Today was a good day, I made a couple of new friends and I sent out my admission letter for Cherryton. I’m going to be going there and hopefully I can pursue a career in drama. I miss you a lot. Me and grandpa miss you._

_..._

_I love you mom. I hope you found peace._

_~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_

_Legosi climbed out of bed and it was the middle of the night. He needed to go somewhere and he needed to think. Being in this room right then was causing his body to shake and he felt like he was going to have an anxiety attack. The wolf got dressed and he grabbed his phone, quietly leaving the room where everybody else was sleeping peacefully. He made his way to the roof and he leaned against a railing, staring out at the moon. It illuminated everything that wasn’t already lit up by lamp posts or cars or anything like that, and he enjoyed being in the faint glow._

_Leg: You awake?_

_Lou: Why?_

_Leg: I need a cigarette._

_Lou: Why?_

_Leg: Can you come and see me?_

_Lou: Why?_

_Leg: I need some help._

_Lou: Why?_

_Leg: Stop asking me that and please help me._

_Lou: Why?_

_Lou: Just kidding. Where are you?_

_Leg: I’m on the roof in the East Wing._

_Lou: Fine. I’ll be there in five minutes._

_Legosi tucked his phone into his pocket and he stared out at the sky, once again. It really was beautiful. Soon enough, he heard footsteps from down below and he peered down to see a dark figure slowly approaching. Then the figure stopped, and looked up...then started sprinting into the building._

_“Legosi, what the fuck are you doing? Get away from the ledge!”_

_“I’m on this side, I’m fine. I’m not going to jump, don’t worry._

_Louis sighed and approached him and stood a few feet away, pulling his hood down._

_“What did you call me here for?”_

_“I...I had a bad dream.”_

_Louis chuckled, sarcastically._

_“So you mean to tell me that you asked me to come here and half three in the morning just because you had a bad dream? Everybody has bad dreams, Legosi!”_

_Legosi sat down on the floor, sniffling quietly._

_“It’s about my mom.”_

_“Oh come on. If you miss her that much, then call her! It’s only been a couple of days and you’re already homesick? What do you expect me to do about it, take you to-“_

_“She’s fucking dead, Louis!”_

_That stopped Louis in his tracks and he froze. He instantly stopped speaking and he just stared at Legosi, not knowing what to say in response._

_“I...shit...alright...”_

_He sat down next to Legosi and lit two cigarettes, while Legosi explained the dream. By the end of it, he was an absolute sobbing mess, his body jolting, tears streaming down his face and his eyes were twitching as he tried and failed not to cry. Louis did not like seeing this at all, it broke something inside of him._

_“Legosi...I’m so sorry...”_

_“I miss her...she was such a lovely mother and she always did her best to take care of me and grandpa. You see, I’m part Komodo dragon on my mom’s side. She ended up growing scales and it was painful for her, and then she...I came back from school one day and she had taken her own life...I...fuck...I...”_

_Louis grabbed Legosi’s hand, and although the wolf tried to pull away, Louis persisted and he leaned against Legosi._

_“I’m so sorry that you had to go through that...but I want you to know that your mom is so very proud of you. You caught a killer for fucks sake, that’s something to be proud of. I can’t tell you that the pain will go away, and I’m so sorry...but you were her pride and joy, Legosi. Your mom loved you very much and I think she did it because she didn’t want you to see her suffer...always trying to protect you...damn, now you’ve got me crying too...I bet that she misses you every day but she’s looking down on you and she’s smiling so widely because her son is making something of himself and that’s all a mother wants...I...”_

_Louis found himself unable to say anymore, tears streaming down his own face now._

_“I’m sorry, Louis...it...it hurts so much...”_

_“Shh, it’s okay...you don’t have to say anything else. I’ve got you, okay?”_

_The cervid turned himself and pulled Legosi into a proper hug, doing his best not to break down while the canine was sobbing into his chest._

_“Legosi, look at me, okay?”_

_The wolf slowly lifted his head, agonising pain very evident within his eyes._

_“You’ve always made her proud, yeah? And it’s okay to feel like this after something like that. You’re not alone anymore, I’ve got you. You’re going to be okay, and I personally promise you that.”_

_This was so out of character for Louis, but it seemed that he had a soft spot for parental issues, especially regarding death._

_Louis wiped away Legosi’s tears and the wolf stopped crying and went to quiet sniffling._

_“I’m proud of you, Legosi.”_

_The two looked into each others eyes for a moment, seeing the heartbreak that the other was feeling. Then something overwhelmed them, and they both leaned forward. Their lips touched, delicately for a few seconds and then Louis pulled back._

_“I...”_

_The deer found himself placing one hand on Legosi’s face, his thumb wiping away a tear and Legosi put his own hand on the back of Louis’ head, mindful of his antlers and then they kissed again, tongues exploring each other’s mouths. It felt warm and soft...and really nice. After a few moments, they pulled away, a trail of saliva still connecting them which broke momentarily after._

_“Do...do you have classes tomorrow?”_

_The wolf shook his head, afraid that if he spoke, he would just start bawling again._

_“I see. Alright. Come with me. You’re very sweaty, and you smell like damp dog. Have you eaten?”_

_Another head shake. Jeez, does this wolf ever take care of himself?_

_“Let’s get you something to eat and cleaned up, yeah?”_

_“C...can we stay here for a few minutes longer...?”_

_Louis pulled out two more cigarettes and lit them, passing one over._

_“Of course.”_


	9. Chapter Nine

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don’t own the characters. Don’t sue me. DISCORD SERVER: https://discord.gg/Xxs5KSW

The pair walked into Louis’ apartment, but Legosi was too sad to pay any attention to it. Louis three his keys down and took his jacket off, going into the kitchen which was only separated from the living room by a counter which had some paper and a fruit bowl on it. Legosi took his shoes off and placed them by the door and then stood there, unknowing of what to do. Louis walked past him, saying nothing and went into another room. A few moments later, the sound of running water could be heard and the deer came back out, rubbing his neck.

“Alright, well, I’ve started up the shower for you. There’s a towel already in there, if you take off your clothes then I’ll put them in the washing machine. I’m the only resident on the top three floors so I don’t have to worry about noise. After that, we’ll sort some food out.” Legosi nodded and went into the bathroom. Louis untied his boots and placed them down, going into the kitchen again. He glanced at the time, not that it really mattered to him right now.

I fucking kissed him again. What the hell am I thinking?

A small smile made its way onto his face and he started rifling through his cupboards for something to cook.

Oh, that’s right. I’ve got a few takeaway menus in my room.

He left the kitchen and walked past the bathroom, but stood still. Legosi was completely naked, facing the wall thankfully but it didn’t stop Louis’s eyes from wandering. He saw the scars on his back from Bill and he was glad that he intervened, otherwise he would have killed him. Then his eyes moved down Legosi’s body, just below his waist...

SNAP OUT OF IT.

He shook his head and kept walking, his face going pretty damn red. He retrieved a few menus and came back out into the living room, covering up the left side of his face so he wouldn’t see anything, although he was tempted by curiosity.

“L-Louis...?” 

The deer had been so wrapped up in his thoughts that he never even noticed the shower turning off, or Legosi coming out of the bathroom. He turned around and saw the wolf with a towel wrapped around his waist, although...the towel was definitely a bit small for Legosi. He could swear he saw an outline...STOP IT LOUIS!

“O-oh um...y-yeah...?”

“I hate to ask this if you...but do you have a spare set of clothes?”

Fuck.

“I...I don’t know if I have anything that’ll fit you. Let me check.”

Louis hurriedly went into his bedroom and closed the door, face redder than before.

HOLY FUCK LOUIS!

He started going through his wardrobe and swore to himself, coming to the realisation that he does not in fact have any clothes that fit the wolf. He came out of his bedroom a few moments later, trying not to look at Legosi.

“I...I don’t have anything, but uh...I got you a blanket to wrap yourself up in...sorry about that...”

Legosi turned a bit red.

“O-oh, that’s fine...thank you.” Louis turned away and just at the right time because Legosi dropped the towel and wrapped the blanket around his body, picking up the towel after.

“W-what do you want to eat? I’ll let you decide, whatever you like.

The deer sat down on the couch and so did Legosi, both feeling a little strange about the kiss...however Louis felt even more strange about what he saw...kinda...

“How about...sushi? It’s not too expensive and it’s nice.”

Louis passed him four menus to look at.

“Don’t worry about price. I don’t give a damn if you order enough food to cost me 500,000 yen. I can afford it.”

He didn’t like showing off his wealth, but then again, it wasn’t his because it was his fathers and he had NO ISSUE spending that.

“I’m okay with sushi, to be honest, I don’t know if I want to eat a lot.”

Strange words from a big carnivore such as himself.

They both looked at the menu and ordered their food after deciding on a couple of sharing platters.

“So...um...about the roof...”

“Sorry, I lost control of my emotions up there...I’ve never talked about my mom before...”

“No, that’s fine but I meant the kiss...”

“Oh. Well...um...it was better than the other day in class.”

Louis felt himself blush a little at the compliment, but he rubbed his face to hide it. He was right though, it was better...a lot better...

“I don’t regret that, Louis. Plus, what’s wrong with two friends kissing?”

He didn’t see an issue with it? 

Louis chose to change the conversation as he felt this would turn awkward.

“You remember me saying that I was going to host a little get together? I just had a thought. Why don’t we do that now? Your canine friends would be more than happy, right? Plus, you’ll be around then so that’ll take your mind off things.”

“Louis, are you sure? It’s almost 4 in the morning.”

He crossed his legs and started reading another menu.

“Sure, why not? I’ll handle the takeaway, I’ve got some contacts who can bring round a decent amount of alcohol for us all, safe to consume, don’t worry and we’ll have a guys night.”

Legosi took out his phone and started texting his friends, meanwhile Louis was placing orders for alcohol on his phone through some private contacts. Louis was determined to make Legosi feel better than he was an hour ago. Soon enough, Dom, Kai, Bill (for some reason) and Pina turned up. Jack said that he was too sleepy to get out of bed, and shortly after, Louis’ alcohol arrived.

“Hey guys, glad that you could make it.”

“Woah, nice place Louis!”

“Hey Louis, what’s up Legosi?”

“You two having your private time? What’s with the blanket?”

“Shut up Bill. Here, Legosi. I brought you some more clothes, like you asked.”

Legosi took the clothes off Pina and went into the bathroom to change. Louis took this opportunity to talk to the others.

“Guys, listen. Legosi isn’t in a good way right now so please just support him as well as you can. Don’t let on that I’ve said anything, just be kind to him. Especially you, Bill. You’re in my home so if you start ANY bullshit, you’re out. I heard what you said about me in the hall the other day, so you’re on thin ice with me.”

“Uh y-yeah...got it...sorry...”

Legosi came out right as Bill finished talking and Louis grabbed his phone. So, we’ve ordered sushi anyways. What do you guys want, and don’t worry about a budget?”

“I fancy a 4am pizza. What about you guys?”

They all nodded in agreement and they ordered their food again.

“Yo, Louis. How come you got taken off the acting team?”

“I’m not sure, I guess the Professor didn’t want me to do it after all. But let’s not do that now, let’s just have a good time, yeah?”

The deer passed around a bunch of beers to everybody and he placed his cigarettes on the table for anybody who wanted one. He took one and started smoking, which no one cared about. Legosi took one too and lit it, and earned himself a surprised stare from everybody in the room aside from the host.

“Since when did you start smoking, dude?” 

The wolf blew out some smoke away from everyone and he glanced at Louis.

“I don’t know, I guess I just...picked it up, I suppose.”

There was a knock at the door again, and Louis answered it.

“Food‘s here.”

He opened the door and found himself face to face with the Professor, who was wearing his usual get up.

“Good morning, Louis.”

He peered in and saw everybody else.

“I see that you are busy, I’ll come back at another time.”

He began to turn away when Louis grabbed his arm, stopping him.

“We’re all having a sort of get together for Legosi. We’ve ordered some food which should be arriving any minute because they’re VERY quick with delivery, and we have some beer and stuff. Would you like to come in?”

The Professor smiled and pushed his glasses up.

“I’d very much like that, if it’s no bother.”

Louis stepped aside, allowing the Professor in.

“Oh hey Professor, welcome to the party!”

“Thank you. Is everybody okay?”

“Yo! Yeah we’re alright, just doing teenage things. Got some pizza arriving soon!”

Speaking of which, the pizza and the sushi arrived within a couple of minutes of each other. The Professor lit a cigarette and grabbed a beer for himself.

“Who wants to play a game?”

Louis opened up an app on his phone and started typing.

“What game is it?”

“It’s a party truth or dare. We don’t need to worry about noise or anything, so that’s not an issue. We can scream as much as we want and nobody would even know...unless you tell somebody about it, Professor.”

The gazelle raised his hands and chuckled.

“I’m technically no longer your teacher so I’ll be joining in.”

“Alright. Everybody’s names have been put in. Let’s see who goes first.” He pressed a button and his phone announced the first player.

“Dom, truth or dare.”

“Truth.”

“Pussy.”

“Shut up Kai.”

“Dom, have you ever kissed anybody?”

“No, I have not.”

“Legosi, truth or dare.”

“Dare.”

“Ooh, adventurous,” smirked Kai.

“Legosi, your dare is to down your drink.”

He shrugged, lifted his bottle to his mouth and proceeded to chug all the contents, and finished with a sigh.

“Professor, truth or dare.”

“Truth.”

“Professor, tell everybody a secret.”

He thought for a moment, and pushed his glasses up.

“I’m not actually 23. I’m 22.”

“You lied about your age?” commented Louis.

“I wanted you all to respect me as a superior. Simple as that.”

“Kai, truth or dare.”

“I choose, dare!”

The app did nothing and everybody was confused.

“You have to say either truth or dare, only one word.”

“Oh, I see.” The question was repeated. “Dare!”

“Kai, your dare is to take an item of clothing off.”

“Oooooh!”

The mongoose lifted off his shirt and placed it behind him, a little shy now.

“We’re all guys here, nothing to be worried about.”

“Shut up.”

“Louis, truth or dare.”

“Dare.”

“Louis, wild card! At any point until your next turn, you have the ability to put both your hands on the floor. The last person to notice this and do the same will have to finish their drink. If they have less than half, they must start a new one and drink all the contents, keeping their first one to the side for another time.”

“Hah, nice!”

“Pina. Truth or dare.”

“Dare!” 

“Pina, your dare is to complete a handstand for five seconds. If you fail, you drink the contents of your beverage.”

“Pssht. Easy.”

Pina stood up and although everybody was watching him, he flipped over and stood on his hands for five seconds with ease.

“H-how did you...?”

“Gymnastics, honey. Top of my class.”

He sat back down and finished his drink anyways.

“Bill, truth or dare.”

“Dare!”

“Bill, your dare is to kiss somebody in the room. If you forfeit, you are to remove three items of clothing.”

His face went pale, and everybody else erupted with laughter.

“Oh shit, the game got you good!”

“Sh-shut up!”

He looked around the room at everybody, who were all curious to see who he would pick. He sighed and leaned over to Pina and pecked him on the cheek.

“Is that acceptable?”

“Well, it doesn’t say that it’s NOT, so I’ll allow it.”

“Dom, truth or dare.”

“Truth.”

“Dom, what is your strangest sexual experience?”

“OH SHIT HAH!”

“Not applicable.”

Louis smirked at him, making a motion to finish his drink, which he did.

“Legosi, truth or dare.”

“Dare.”

“Legosi, your dare is to remove two items of clothing. A forfeit is to drink three full beverages.”

Without any time to lose, Legosi removed his tie and shirt.

“Technically, it’s two items.”

Louis and the Professor found themselves both distracted by this.

“Professor, truth or dare.”

“Dare.”

“Professor, your dare is to kiss, with tongue, the person before you in this game. Your forfeit is to do a backflip.”

He pushed his glasses up and his face went a little red.

“Well, Legosi. I suppose we can use this for practice for the play.”

He shuffled over to Legosi and pressed their lips together, slipping his tongue inside the wolf’s mouth. He pulled Legosi against himself, feeling his bare chest, ruffling his fur. Legosi closed his eyes and let himself go into the kiss, allowing his tongue to slip along over the Professors’, pulling away after a few moments, a little breathless. Louis felt a little bit of a hostile feeling, but it was just a game...right? Everybody in the room felt a little weird at it, but they shrugged it off. Pina was watching intently the whole time though, clearly enjoying the show.

“Kai, truth or dare.”

“Dare.”

“Remove an item of clothing. Forfeit is to kiss somebody in the room.”

“What?! Again? That’s not fair!”

Bill bit into a slice of pizza.

“Thatsh che game.”

Kai sighed and removed his jeans, awkwardly covering himself. A mobile device went off, and Bill took out his phone. The tiger read it, and stood up.

“I’m sorry guys, but I need to go.” He said nothing else, his face displaying worry and he left pretty quickly.

“Alright, gonna remove him from the game.”

Louis picked up his phone and started typing.

“Actually, I’m gonna head out too, I’m pretty tired.”

“Oh, alright. See you later, Kai.”

The mongoose got dressed again and left too.

“Hm. Okay, so we have a lot of beer, cigarettes and food still left. Shall we continue?”

Everybody nodded in agreement, briefly taking a moment to have a few bites to eat. Legosi kept his tie and shirt off, which kept distracting Louis and the Professor. The remainder of the group kept playing for an hour or so, getting increasingly drunk.


	10. Chapter Ten

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don’t own the characters. Don’t sue me. DISCORD SERVER: https://discord.gg/Xxs5KSW

Professor opened his eyes, sprawled out across Louis’ couch. His head felt fuzzy, but it wasn’t a painful hangover. The gazelle sat up, rubbing his neck. He felt a little cold, and looked down, his face turning pale. He was completely naked and his clothes were strewn across the floor.

What the fuck, he thought to himself. He quickly got dressed and stepped over a few bottles and pizza boxes, making his way into Louis’ room, thinking that it was the bathroom. He was in for another surprise. Legosi and Louis were in the same bed together, and their clothes were scattered all over the floor. Louis must have heard him and he opened his eyes, sitting up. The deer yawned and stretched, his hand hitting something. He looked at the Professor and then at Legosi, who was facing away from him. His face now drained from all colour, he peered under the covers, his eyes darting back to the Professor then to Legosi. He started shaking a little and the gazelle stared at him in shock, while putting his glasses on.

“WHAT THE FUCK?!”

The sudden noise scared Legosi awake and he almost fell out of bed, who quickly caught onto what the issue was.

“WHAT THE FUCK?!”

The Professor decided that he wouldn’t shout it as well, the two in bed were already in shock enough.

“LEGOSI! WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING NAKED IN MY BED?”

“I DON’T KNOW! WHY THE FUCK AM I HERE?”

“DON’T SIT THERE, GET OUT OF MY HOME, BOTH OF YOU!”

The Professor didn’t need to be told twice. He walked straight out without saying a word. Legosi got himself dressed and Louis looked away from him to allow him that privacy. God, this would make class awkward...wait, what day was it? He looked at his phone while the wolf behind slipped his underwear on and then the rest of his clothes. He noted his window blinds on the floor. Apparently Pina had left at some point during the night. Louis swallowed, staring at his phone.

“Legosi, it’s fucking Monday! We’ve been here for two days! SHIT!”

Legosi gathered his things and left pretty quickly too, leaving Louis to get dressed and to wonder what the fuck happened. He didn’t even want to think about the mess in his living room. Louis threw on a black shirt, leather jacket, jeans and boots before grabbing his phone, walking straight out of his apartment to go to class.

Safe to say, it was awkward in the drama hall. For three, it was more awkward than others. Legosi, Louis nor the Professor could look at each other.

“Good morning everybody...today, we will be rehearsing once more. Louis is back, and I will be assigning him to outfitting with Pina and Dom. The rest of you know your positions, and I want to see you all working to the best of your ability. Legosi, have you been working on your script?”

The wolf nodded his head. Technically, he wasn’t wrong because he did practice a kiss...

“Good. We shall get started then.” 

Everybody went to their positions and the Professor went into the office, sitting at his desk. He lit up a cigarette and laid his head on his arms, his horns pushing a couple of pieces of paper. He couldn’t stop thinking about kissing Legosi, but he also wondered why everybody was naked. What happened...?

It seemed that Louis wanted to know that too. He sat down next to Pina, who was tapping away on his phone.

“Hey, Pina. Do you know what happened last night?”

“Last night, hm? Well, you, the Professor and Legosi were asleep for the entire day. If you mean the other night, all I know is that there were a lot of noises coming from your bedroom, so I left. It was after our little chat in the bathroom about Bill. All three of you were in there, and I couldn’t exactly make out what the noises were...but I have a general idea. Looks like all three of you fucked.”

He said with a laugh and Louis punched him on the arm.

“Keep your fucking voice down!”

He looked over to Legosi, who was reading his script. Did they really...? All three...?

“Oh! I just remembered!”

He started tapping again on his phone and opened up a video, that Legosi had started. Him, the Professor and Louis were in the bedroom in their underwear all having a play fight, wrestling with each other. The video was two hours long, but Louis started skipping to different parts of the video, watching intently. In the final minutes, the Professor took off his underwear but covered himself, so that was good. Next, Louis had gotten into bed and he threw his underwear against the window, which knocked down the blinds. That explains it. The Professor took the phone with one hand, presumably covering himself with the other. Considering that neither wolf nor deer commented on the nudity, it was pretty clear that the Professor didn’t expose himself at all. Louis decided to let him know that after the video would finish, but he kept watching.

“Legosiiiiiii, get in here!!! I want a wolf in my bed!”

Louis went extremely red at that, and Pina smirked.

“But Louuuuuuuu, it’ll smell like dog!”

“Mmh but I like the dog smell!”

The Professor was heard laughing.

“Hah, he smells fuckin’ great!”

“Fiiine!!!” 

Legosi climbed into the bed quite drunkenly, knocking an empty bottle off the bedside table with his tail. Next, he took off his underwear and threw it at the Professor, who deflected it with Legosi’s phone. After a moment, Louis and Legosi had fallen asleep and then the Professor ended the video. Louis sighed, extremely relieved but quite embarrassed.

“Well...at least we know that nothing happened. I don’t remember seeing anything. I need to talk to the Professor. Can I take the phone for a few minutes?”

The dall sheep stood up, moving past Louis.

“Legosi! Come into the office with us, we need to all have a talk with the Professor. Everyone else, I’m personally dismissing you!”

All three went into the office, and Pina showed the Professor the full video.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

At the end, the Professor pushes his glasses up onto his nose, sighing.

“At least we all know that nothing happened, and to my knowledge, I didn’t see anything. Did either of you see anything?”

“I saw Legosi’s behind in my bed this morning, but we all know that.”

“Wait, what?!”

“Okay, maybe you didn’t know but you do now. Legosi, did you see anything from me or the Professor?”

He stood there for a moment, all of them sharing a collective feeling of embarrassment.

“I saw outlines through underwear...but that’s all.”

The Professor nodded and lit a cigarette, offering Legosi one. He took it and Louis lit his own, giving one to Pina too, who started smoking the other night.

(A/N: DON’T START SMOKING. SHIT’S BAD FOR YOU.)

“Okay. It seems that all that happened is we got very intoxicated and got a little confident. We have nothing to necessarily be embarrassed about. Pina, delete the video. You too, Legosi. Once those are deleted, we have nothing to worry about at all. For what it’s worth, I had a really good time with you guys.”

“Yeah, I did too. I’m glad that I invited you all.”

Legosi and Pina agreed too, all of them feeling quite relieved.

“Tell you what. Out of a sign of good will, I want you three to come out to lunch with me.”

The mention of food got Legosi’s tail wagging. Pina sighed and put his phone in his pocket.

“To be honest, as pleasant as that sounds, I’ve got a lot of work to catch up on so I’ll be seeing you guys later. Peace!”

Pina left the room, which left Louis. Legosi hopes that Louis would say yes, and he looked at him to coax him into it.

“Actually, I’ve got a lot of cleaning to do in my apartment. You’ve all seen it, and it’s a fucking war zone.”

Unfortunately for Legosi, that was a very valid reason as he contributed to messing up the place. Louis bid them farewell and left them to it.

“Okay, seems it’s just me and you, Legosi. Shall we go?”

One thing that Legosi couldn’t tell, was that the Professor was counting on taking only Legosi. Thing is...how would he tell him what happened?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The wolf and gazelle walked into a nice sushi bar downtown. He knew that Legosi enjoyed sushi. The other animals around paid no attention to them as they were too busy enjoying themselves and their food with their company, or even by their lonesome, working on laptops or paperwork.

“Go and sit down, I’ll grab some drinks. Cola, ice, lemon and lime?”

Legosi nodded, sitting down in front the the conveyor in the middle of the room. The food smelled absolutely delicious and his tail was wagging so intensely, he almost hit another customer in the face. Luckily, they didn’t notice as they were typing away. A few moments after, the Professor returned with their drinks.

“Here you are. Dinner’s on me.”

He sat down next to the wolf and took a sip of his drink.

“Professor...is this some kind of a date?”

“Well, if you want to look at it like that. I see this as a friendly dinner. Down to you, Legosi.”

The gazelle picked up two plates of vegetable sushi and placed them in front of himself and the canine and he picked up a piece.

“You know, vegetable sushi is quite interesting. It tastes very nice, but it always leaves us wondering, what would it taste like with meat? Have you ever tasted meat before?”

Legosi shook his head and ate a piece.

“I haven’t either. It never really appealed to me.”

Legosi looked at him in surprise.

“You know, it’s not very often that a herbivore would say that I’m weird for not wanting to eat meat. It’s a little confusing that you’d consider it though.

“You’re not weird at all, Legosi. I admire you for that. And anyways, who hasn’t considered it at least once in your life? I bet I taste amazing.”

The Professor smiled at him sweetly and bit into a piece of the sushi. Legosi ate another piece, carnivores tended to eat more than others.

“Professor, I want to apologise for recording the video. I wasn’t in a good state and I-“

“I’m gonna stop you right there. You did nothing wrong with recording, I don’t see any issues with it at all. If there’s anybody who should be apologising, it’s me. I kinda lied to Louis and Pina earlier, me and you were both completely naked and we were making out on the sofa for at least half an hour.”

Legosi almost choked on his food.

“Wait what?! Are you serious?”

The Professor nodded, seemingly a little ashamed.

“If I’m honest, Legosi, you came onto me. Not like that, you got really drunk and started kissing me. Louis was talking with Pina in the bathroom about something.“

That made sense to Legosi, he did notice that Louis and Pina was gone for a while, but everything was a bit of a blur.

“I...I don’t know what came over me. I’ve never done that type of thing before...and I’m sorry for what happened and for what you saw.”

The Professor nodded and took a large mouthful of his drink, eating another piece.

“I didn’t actually see anything, if it helps. I FELT something, and I’m sure you can guess. The way I see it, it was a drunken moment and we can both agree to move on as two individuals, correct?”

Legosi agreed, struggling to look at the gazelle.

“Legosi. We should probably get back to the school soon. Finish your drink and then we’ll head out. And please, not a word to anybody for both our sakes.”


	11. Chapter Eleven

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Over 300 hits! Wow! Thank you all so much, I am incredibly grateful to all of you who have been reading this! It’s a pleasure to write for you and keep you entertained!
> 
> Oh yeah, the first part of this chapter is gonna be lewd and graphic. So...NSFW warning. You’ve been warned. NSFW. Warning. ENJOY!!!!

Legosi stepped inside of Louis’ apartment, welcomed by his friend. It was a lovely evening and the moon was shining through the windows, cascading a lovely atmosphere. The smell of spaghetti bolognese filled the air, and Legosi’s tail was wagging extremely happily. He took his shoes off and sat down on the couch, while Louis went into the kitchen.

“Hey, Legosi? Sit at the table, I’ll be bringing in dinner momentarily.”

He got back up and sat down again, admiring the candles on the polished wood. Louis walked in, wearing a lovely suit and holding two plates. His fur was freshly brushed and he wore a very soft smile, which made Legosi feel insignificant, even if he was wearing a suit and had organised himself too.

“Wow...you look beautiful.”

The deer laughed and sat down, pouring a glass of wine for both of them.

“Says you, you’re absolutely stunning, Legosi. I really enjoy cooking for you, so I hope that you like this, my love. I also have a surprise for you after dinner. Now please, eat before it gets cold.”

The two ate, talked, laughed and drank. Louis felt extremely happy, so glad that he managed to muster the courage to talk to Legosi about his feelings for him.

“You know, if we never kissed in the hall, I would never have developed feelings for you like this. I suppose one good thing came out of the Professor, right?”

“Yeah, I agree. I was worried though, that you didn’t hold me in the same reserve that I held you but I’m so glad that we share these feelings for each other. And by the way, that was absolutely wonderful. I adored it, almost as much as I adore you.”

Louis blushed deeply, drinking the last of the wine in his glass before standing up. He moved over to Legosi and placed one hand on the table and the other on the wall behind the wolf, leaning in. He pressed their lips together. They could taste the wine and food, but they didn’t care. Louis stepped back, pulling on his partners tie, urging him to stand up.

“You look ravishing in that suit, but you look delicious without it. I want it off, right now.”

“Of course, deer.”

Louis chuckled at the wordplay and made his way to the bedroom, taking off all of his clothes very quickly. Legosi followed shortly and Louis eyed him up, blushing deeply.

“You don’t look delicious. You look beautiful, Legosi.”

The wolf climbed onto the bed and so did a very horny cervid. Legosi laid on his back and Louis laid on top of him, rubbing their bodies together. The deer planted kisses along the wolf’s neck and chest, all the way down to his lower waist.

“Mmh, go lower.”

“Not today love...I have something else planned for you.”

He reached over and opened a bottle of lubricant, pouring some onto his hand.

“You know, I love it when you do this. It’s so fucking sexy.”

Louis grabbed Legosi’s hard member, rubbing the lubricant on it, earning himself a quiet growl from his lover.

“Mmfh...”

Louis applied some lube to his own entrance, and Legosi rubbed his buttocks, squeezing them gently.

“You ready?”

The deer nodded, biting his lip. The wolf pushed a finger inside of his partner, adoring the tightness and the little moans that Louis made.

“You like that, hm?”

Louis leaned forward and kissed his lover passionately, slipping his tongue inside of the canines, feeling his heart beating faster than an Olympic track record.

“Oh, Legosi...I can’t do this anymore...I need you now.”

He moved back down Legosi’s body and positioned himself above Legosi’s slicked up cock. Holding the wolf’s hands, he lowered himself, pushing down onto his lovers sexual organ.

“A-aah, Legosi~” He had a little bit of difficulty straddling him, so Legosi took the initiative. He grabbed Louis’ waist and flipped him onto his back.

“Tell me that you want me.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Louis opened his eyes in his bed, staring at his ceiling, thinking about the dream that he just had. The tent that he was pitching was very evident of what he was feeling.

“Shit. I need to tell Legosi.”

He unlocked his phone and tapped a few times, opening the messages between him and the wolf. Did he really want to go through with this? Did he have the guts?

Lou: Hey, you up?

Leg: I was just getting ready for bed, why?

Lou: It’s almost 2am, what were you doing?

Leg: I was with the Professor.

This late? What was he doing?

Lou: Ah okay. Are you free?

Leg: No, I’m at least 1000 yen an hour. Of course I’m free, do you want to meet?

Lou: I can afford that, so yes. Come see me. Fountain?

Leg: How about the swimming pool?

Lou: Sure. I’ve got a couple of things I need to talk to you about.

Leg: Me too. See you soon!

Me too? Oh, boy. Maybe this’ll go better than I thought.

Louis grabbed his studded jacket, lighter, cigarettes and the rest of his ‘out of school’ outfit and made his way to the swimming pool, thinking about how he was going to say this, or even if he was going to say it at all.

He opened the door and saw the wolf sat on the edge of the pool, his tail swishing gently behind him.

“Hey, Louis.”

“Hey.”

Louis went over and sat next to him, taking out two cigarettes. He was going to need it. He lit them and passed one to Legosi, and they took a large drag.

“You wanted to talk about something?”

Oh, we’re getting right into it. Okay. Shit. Fuck. Okay. Okay. Okay.

“Yeah...I...when I brought you to my apartment...I kinda saw you in the shower. I didn’t see the...front...of you but I-“

“I know you did.”

Louis stared at him, quite surprised.

“Y-you did?”

The pair took another drag, the smoke filling their air and they flicked the ash away.

“Yeah. You have mirrors in your bathroom and they hadn’t fogged up yet. Don’t worry about it, it’s only my butt.”

The wolf grinned playfully and his tail swished.

“So, what did you want to say to me, Legosi?”

“I don’t know if you’ll like this...but...” he took a deep breath, “while you were talking with Pina, me and the Professor kissed a lot on your couch. We were naked...”

He looked away and Louis poked his tongue into his cheek, not knowing how to even react to that.

“He said...that he didn’t see anything...?”

“He was correct. He told me that earlier today too, and he said that he only saw my butt as well. We were all drunk...and then again, I woke up naked in your bed, where you were also naked. I suppose that’s something, right?”

Louis only nodded, struggling to process this. His emotions were going into turmoil. Did he even want to tell Legosi? The fucking Professor? He stole his club right from under his nose, and now he’s trying to get Legosi too?

“I don’t know. On my couch?”

“...Yes.”

“With the Professor?”

“...Yes.”

Louis took another large drag of his cigarette, exhaling above him. He didn’t know what to do. Suddenly, Legosi’s phone started vibrating and he took it out, answering it.

“Yes...yep...no, I haven’t...sure. I’ll see you in the morning. Goodnight, Professor. Sleep well. Thank you.”

Those words cut Louis like a bunch of daggers (or even nine knives :3) and he clenched his fist, shaking a little. There was nothing insinuated within the phone call...but Louis and Legosi had never even called before. Especially not a goodnight call. That hurt a lot. Fuck it.

“Legosi. I called you here because I wanted to tell you that I have feelings for you. I don’t know how to explain it, and to be quite frank, I don’t know why I’m feeling it. I don’t know whether it was the kiss in the hall, or in my living room, or even if it was waking up next to you naked in my own fucking bed, which still smells like you by the way. I don’t know if it’s your fucking smile, your kind nature, which clashes with mine, your softness for herbivores like myself...and the Professor...” he said those words through gritted teeth, “but I’m gonna be very blunt with you now. I had a dream before I texted you and you were fucking me, Legosi. I woke up feeling so goddamn strange but it confirmed my conflicting feelings that I’ve had over the past week or so and guess what? It doesn’t even fucking matter! I don’t know if you’ve realised this, but I’m gay Legosi! I’m fucking gay and I wanted you! I’m fucking attracted to you and I don’t even know why! But I don’t care anymore. Go and see the Professor, go and fuck him, be with him, I do NOT FUCKING CARE ANYMORE LEGOSI!”

He stood up and flicked his cigarette off the building, which landed in the fountain. If he wasn’t so angry and upset and conflicted, he would have been proud of that.

“Louis, wait!”

The deer approached the door and swung it open before stopping, not even looking over his shoulder.

“Just don’t ever come to my apartment again. I’ll act with you, and I’ll tolerate being in the same room as you if I NEED to, but don’t expect anything else.”

He left Legosi sat there, absolutely stunned and speechless...but what the wolf didn’t know was that Louis was crying harder than he had ever cried in his life. He ran as fast as he could back to his own apartment, wiping his eyes. He felt dizzy and his heart felt like it was shattering more and more with each second that passed. Once he got home, he slammed his door shut and went into his bedroom. He tore the sheets off his bed and threw them in a pile against the wall. Breathing heavily, he stormed into the living room and tossed all of the cushions into the bathroom. Louis retrieved the sheets and threw them into the shower as well as the cushions. He threw his jacket into the living room and turned the shower on, putting it onto the highest jet setting possible. He sprayed the sheets and cushions, wanting to get rid of the scents of the Professor and Legosi. Then, he put the shower head back into the slot and slid underneath it. Sure, the jet wash caused him agonising pain and he screamed out as it pierced through his fur and stabbed his skin, but what hurt more was the pain he felt in his heart.


	12. Come And Share Your Thoughts!

Hey everybody, NinesKnives here! I want to thank you all for reading It’s Only Instinct, and I’m really grateful that you’re all sticking around to see what happens chapter after chapter. I advertise this in all of the chapters but it would mean the world to me if you could all join my Discord server to talk with me, share your thoughts and make some new friends within this small but growing community. There will be benefits such as server only content for It’s Only Instinct as well as updates on when new chapters will be released, so you know when they’ll be uploaded! I’d love to hear from all of you!

DISCORD SERVER: https://discord.gg/Xxs5KSW

Again, thank you for reading and I look forward to meeting you all!

Also, this will display as Chapter 11 but it’s not related to the story at all. The next chapter will be displayed as Chapter 11, so please don’t be confused by this!


	13. Chapter Twelve

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so the whole chapter number business is an absolute mess. The chapter list will state that there is one more than there really is, but please just follow the titles. Example, this title will simply be Chapter Twelve. Keep following it like that and hopefully we can avoid any confusion. Thanks!

“Louis...I’m sorry...”

He apologised, but Louis wasn’t there. He spoke to the door that had just closed behind the deer as he took off after tearing into Legosi. He knew that Louis wouldn’t like it, but he had to tell him. He didn’t exactly promise the Professor, and he was sure that he’d understand. He was right, but at what cost? Louis understood it all. But how was he meant to know that Louis was going to confess feelings for him? When Louis said about seeing Legosi’s behind in the shower, that’s all that the wolf thought he needed to say so he didn’t see any harm in it. He sat there and lit another cigarette as the Professor bought them for him. Legosi paid and that and he’s old enough, but he wanted the brand that the Professor smokes. Blowing the smoke out, he watched it trail into the sky and fade into nothingness. Maybe he should call Louis. The canine took out his phone and dialled the cervid. It rung twice but then the call was denied, which means that Louis hung up on him. He tried again. It rang once this time, then to voicemail.

Leg: Louis, I’m sorry.

Leg: Please talk to me.

Leg: I didn’t know that you felt that way about me, so I didn’t see any harm in saying that. I thought that you only saw me as an acting partner, and I thought that you thought the kiss meant nothing. I shouldn’t make assumptions on what goes on in your head, and I’m sorry.

Leg: Louis?

Leg: Okay. I’ll leave you alone.

He put his phone down, taking a decently size drag on the cigarette. He hadn’t even thought about his own sexuality and here Louis was, confessing so many emotions and feelings that were completely foreign to Legosi. Not that he can blame the deer for having emotions, it’s not something that can be helped. It didn’t stop him from feeling so damn bad for him. He looked up at the moon and blew the smoke towards it. His phone vibrated and he thought for a moment that it was Louis.

Jack: Hey, you okay?

Leg: Not really.

Jack: I can tell by all the screaming. Who was that?

Leg: It was Louis.

Jack: I won’t pry...over text, anyway. Come to the room and calm down. I’ll make you a cup of warm milk and I’ll start up the shower for you. I’ll even give you goodnight cuddles.

Leg: I’m not really in the mood to sleep while cuddling anybody.

Jack: But we’ve always done that when the other person was sad... :(

Leg: It’s...difficult.

Leg: I’ll be there soon.

Legosi finished off his cigarette and made his way to the dorm room, where Jack was waiting patiently. What was he even going to say to him?

“Hey...you alright? You’ve...been crying.”

Legosi simply walked in and shook his head, almost collapsing on the floor. The Labrador came and sat down next to him, pressing a mug of warm milk into the wolf’s hands. He took a sip, which removed the taste of cigarettes from his mouth, so that was something.

“Do you want to talk about it?”

Legosi said nothing at all and just stared into the mug, the dark rim, milk in the middle and the steam...all coming together to remind him of looking at the moon with cigarette smoke drifting in front of it. He seemed almost mesmerised by it, but he was still there in the room, mentally.

(If that didn’t make sense, think of when people say “3, 2, 1, back in the room”. He still had consciousness...it’s surprisingly hard to explain. I hope you all understand!)

“Do you want me to run you a shower?”

Again, another head shake. The wolf took another mouthful of the beverage, his breathing becoming erratic, but quietly. His hands were shaking. His eyes were fixated on one place and his heart was pounding. His thoughts were taking over and he felt sick, although he knew he wasn’t going to throw up. Legosi was calmly having a panic attack and the only one who could help him was Louis. He finished his drink and Jack took the mug, placing it on the table. He took off his shoes, shirt and jeans before climbing into bed. He rolled over and faced the wall, staring at it. Once wrapped up, he pushed his underwear off, as Legosi didn’t enjoy sleeping naked around the summertime. It would get WAY too warm. (As of writing this...same. It’s 3am and it’s 22 degrees Celsius. The air is SPICY and clothes are just a complete no go. A blanket is bad enough.)

“Jack...can you come here, please?”

The smaller canine poked his head in through the curtains on the bunk bed.

“Is everything okay, Legosi? Can I get you anything else?”

“I need a hug.”

His voice cracked as he spoke, and he felt a tear fall down his face. Jack took off his clothes too and climbed in, pressing his chest to Legosi’s back and he curled his body to fit against Legosi’s, almost like a puzzle piece. Others would see it weirdly, especially as Jack’s...stuff...was pressing against his friends behind, but apparently it was a canine thing...or maybe just something between them. There was never anything untowards meant by it, and nothing ever happened. It was something that the pair did to let the other know that they were as close to them as possible, that they trusted one another with their bodies in such an intimate way, and that they would protect them from anything and anyone. Legosi laid there, quietly telling Jack everything that happened. The Labrador usually would have been extremely overwhelmingly excited, hearing all of what has happened, but this time, he just held his friend and listened as they cried and talked. He knew that excitement was not needed right now, and he didn’t even feel it inside him. For once in his life, Jack was one hundred percent serious and he knew that Legosi needed support. Once he had said everything, Legosi pulled one of his hands up to Jack’s, which was draped over him and stayed comfortably on his chest. He held his best friends hand and took a few deep breaths.

“Legosi...have you calmed down a little?”

The wolf nodded, not wanting to speak anymore.

“Good. I think that you should get some rest. Would you like me to stay here, or go to my bunk? Down to you.”

Legosi gave his answer by gripping the Labradors hand tight-ish, refusing to let go. He felt Jack’s...body parts...but it didn’t bother him at all. He needed the security from his best friend. Jack stayed with him all night, making sure that he was safe. Their hands didn’t separate, not once.

“Louis, I’m sorry. I never meant to hurt you like that. I never knew you felt that way towards me. I wish that I never said anything to you about the Professor...”

Suddenly, the vision of Louis changed. He found himself face to face with the Professor, practically laying on top of him, looking into the gazelles eyes. He closed his eyes and leaned down and kissed him...again...and again...and again...he felt their bodies touching in extremely intimate places, he felt the hands rubbing up and down his back, squeezing his butt gently...and he felt the Professors tongue inside of his own mouth.

The next time that Legosi opened his eyes, he was staring at the wall in the dorm room, Jack still curled up against him. Who did he want, Louis or the Professor? Did he even want either of them? Did he even want anybody?

No, Legosi. Calm down. You’re going to work yourself up into a panic attack again, and Jack’s asleep this time. Deal with it in the morning. For now, just try to calm down.

He managed to regain control of his breathing, which was the biggest issue and he eventually fell asleep again, hoping for a better dream.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After being soaked for about four hours, Louis decided that enough was enough. He climbed, shakily to his feet and turned the shower off. He pulled the wet shirt over his head, which got caught and tore on his antlers, so he just kept ripping it until it came off. He managed to pull his boots off his feet as well as his socks, with great difficulty, but the hardest was his jeans. It took him a solid ten minutes to wriggle and push his way out of them and he tossed them into his kitchen, ready to be put into the washing machine the next day...or rather, later that day. He managed to get out of his underwear, which he also discarded to the kitchen. His back hurt, so he went to look in the mirror. What he saw should have shocked him, but he didn’t really care. There was a decently large size area on his upper left back, just beneath his shoulder where the water was blasting him, which was missing a lot of fur. On the exposed areas, it was completely red raw and there was blood in some places from the intensity of the jet. It tore into his skin, through his shirt and fur. He decided to deal with it whenever he felt like it, so he just trudged to the bedroom. He gathered more bedsheets and blankets and pillows and lazily made the bed before climbing in. Thankfully, he naturally dries relatively quickly so he didn’t need to worry about getting the clean sheets and that wet, not that he actually cared at that moment. He pulled a pillow against his naked body and pressed his face into it, breathing in.

...It smells like Legosi...


	14. Chapter Thirteen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To be honest, I don’t even know how this is going to play out. I always write the notes first so just keep an open mind. Enjoy!
> 
> Update: Yeah. It gets lewd.

He breathed in the pillow again, closing his eyes. He regretted the way that he treated Legosi, he felt that it was undeserved.

“I should call him...”

He reached for his phone which was on the bedside table and noticed that he had a multitude of texts as well as two missed calls. Reading the texts slowly broke him down, but it was the final one that really got to him. He kept reading it again and again, wishing that it wasn’t on his screen, but he couldn’t change it.

Leg: Okay. I’ll leave you alone.

He didn’t know what to say or do. Louis just...stared at the final message. He did this, and he knew it. His actions towards Legosi pushed them further apart.

Lou: Don’t apologise, you didn’t do anything wrong. I’m sorry for being an asshole to you earlier.

Lou: I don’t want you to leave me alone.

Lou: Don’t leave me alone.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

(This next scene was requested by a very kind reader, so this is for you, rnnto20! Also, NSFW warning!)

Both canines didn’t feel like going to class today. They stayed under the covers in the darkness, choosing to not pull back the curtains that kept them hidden from the outside world. Legosi was suffering, and Jack wanted to support him. Legosi didn’t really dream of anything, but Jack did. He always had more of a creative imagination, even if he did let it out during the times when he was awake too. Tonight was different, though. Neither of them dreamed of anything. They didn’t actually sleep much, either. They would keep waking up in the night, which in turn would wake the other. Neither of them minded, being woken up by the other would let them know that either Legosi or Jack was still there with them. Jack must have rolled over during the night, so Legosi decided to cuddle up to him in the same was as the Labrador did with him. Chest against back, arm over chest or waist...places...touching...places...all that stuff. It was the most sexual contact that Legosi or Jack had ever experienced, up until a few days ago anyway, but neither of them would think about it twice, or even a first time, for that matter. Neither of the two could deny that they hadn’t fantasised about it while fully awake, or dreamed about it, but they would never admit it either. Basically, everything was platonic. (Platonic means an intimate and affectionate relationship that isn’t sexual.)

“Mmfh...”

The Labrador shuffled backwards against Legosi, who in turn shuffled towards the wall while still cuddling his best friend. The bed was small, so there wasn’t anywhere else for him to go. Thankfully, his fur stopped him from getting cold and with Jack pressing the...entire...back part of his body against Legosi’s chest and that, he wasn’t going to be getting cold any time soon. The wolf kind of woke up, feeling himself getting squished but it didn’t cause too much bother. He laid there, not moving and thinking about the Professor, Jack and...Louis. He felt really bad. Louis tore into him for being close to someone else naked, granted him and Jack aren’t making out or doing anything sexual, but he was still doing it. Then again, Jack’s his best friend and they’ve done this a countless number of times over the years that they’ve known each other. Maybe Legosi just wanted to sleep with somebody. His friend rolled over, facing Legosi and he straightened out a little, giving Legosi some room to move. When he laid down a little more into his back, he put his hands under the covers to adjust himself slowly as to not wake Jack up, but then his hand traced along something. Quickly pulling away, he knew exactly what that was.

Oh fuck I just did that-okay-well-shit-did he notice-I don’t think he noticed-oh god-okay-well-um-just pretend that it didn’t happen.

The golden canine pulled one of his hands up in his sleep, brushing against Legosi’s leg, causing him to sharply inhale, his eyes widening a little.

OHFUCKOKAYCALMDOWN

“I felt you touch me, Legosi...”

His voice was almost silent, but just loud enough for the wolf to hear, and only the wolf.

“S-sorry...I didn’t mean to...”

Jack opened his eyes and smiled.

“It’s alright. How are you feeling this morning...?”

Legosi blinked and rubbed his left eye, trying not to yawn in Jack’s face.

“B-better...thank you for being here...”

“It’s no bother...just...try not to push THAT against me when you’re hard again, please. It’s quite distracting.”

Legosi’s eyes widened and his face went red.

“I-I’m sorry, I didn’t realise th-“

“Legosi, calm down. We’re two naked teenagers sharing a bed, what did you think was going to happen? It’s fine, honestly.” 

Under the cover, Jack grabbed Legosi’s hand.

“It’s nice, being this close to you again...you’ve been distant with me for a while...I missed you, Legosi...”

He guided his hand along a little and he bit his lip when the wolfs fingers touched a familiar part. It was already pretty solid, and long too.

“U-uh...Jack...what’re you doing...?”

“Haven’t you ever wanted to experiment?”

He was right. Sometimes, Legosi would look under the covers at Jacks body out of curiosity. He felt like he would want to touch, just to see what it feels like...truth be told, Legosi used to have a little crush on Jack, although he would never admit it.

“Y-yeah...I suppose...”

Jack curled his friends fingers around his member, a minuscule noise leaving his mouth. The larger wolf blushed deeply and started rubbing up and down, as he had done to himself so many times. Jack let out a little moan, his member twitching a bit at the pleasurable sensation and Legosi started to stroke himself too, exhaling softly. Both of his hands were at work, pleasuring the two of them. He wasn’t going to lie, this felt great, and Jack felt good too, in his hand.

“Mmfh, Legosi...faster...”

Something inside the wolf clicked and he felt a strange feeling in his chest, which screamed at him to go faster. Maybe it was lust. Maybe it was hormones, or maybe he was just fucking horny. He picked up the pace, earning a loud-ish moan from his friend, who thrusted his hips up into his hand. Legosi rolled over and positioned himself above Jack, placing their cocks together and he rubbed them both with one hand, starting to bite Jack’s neck a bit.

“A-ah, mmh, th-that feels...mmfh!~”

Soon enough, the room was filled with moans from both canines, who were really enjoying themselves. Jack had seemed to be enjoying himself more, as his noises were becoming more passionate, and his breathing more erratic.

“L-Legosi...I-I’m close!~”

At that moment, the wolf pulled away and moved down the bed, taking Jack’s length in his mouth, tasting him and taking his cock right to the base, curling his tongue around and occasionally flicking the tip when he would pull back.

“O-oh, Legosi! Ahh!~”

Jack placed his hand on the back of Legosi’s head and thrusted upwards into his mouth, causing his friend to deepthroat him as he filled his mouth and throat with his warm, sweet seed. He shot out a few streams before pulling back, riding out his orgasm, cock pulsating inside of Legosi. The wolf simply swallowed and licked around his length, cleaning him up and when he managed to catch a hint of his breath, Jack pushed Legosi down onto the bed, taking over. The Labrador started licking up and down Legosi’s hardness, earning a few loud moans and gasps from the wolf.

“J-Jack...mmfh...~”

It didn’t take much longer for Legosi to reach his climax, spilling his own liquid inside of Jack’s mouth, thrusting upwards. He released about five or six solid streams into his friend, which was a considerable amount more than what Jack let out. The dog cleaned Legosi up too, once he had finished fully and they both collapsed on the bed next to each other, panting.

Once they got their breath back, they faced each other.

“Well...how was that..?”

The larger canine nodded, licking his lips.

“That was...wow...Jack...you’re really good at that...”

His friend simply chuckled and took his hand. They could stay like this forever, and Jack really wanted to. Unfortunately, Jack opened his eyes a few moments later and discovered that none of that had happened, and he was simply cuddling Legosi in his bed.

Oh well, he thought. He’d have that dream as a memory, for when he was alone.


	15. Chapter Fourteen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WOW! 400 HITS! I’m honestly blown away at that, I’m so glad that It’s Only Instinct is starting to be seen by more and more people. It’s truly a pleasure to write this story for you and I hope that I can keep on entertaining you all! Enjoy the chapter!

Legosi stirred in his sleep, rolling over and waking up. He felt an emptiness in his bed and he discovered that Jack had left, presumably at some point during the night. He laid there under the covers and looked at his phone. It’s only 4:28am...huh. He heard some snoring from above him, which indicated that Jack went back to his own bed. The wolf read his texts, and his heart sank with each and every one, but it was the final one that really got to him.

Lou: Don’t leave me alone.

Leg: I’m here, Louis.

Lou: ...still awake too?

Leg: Just woke up, actually. Can’t you sleep?

Lou: No.

Leg: Would you like me to come and see you?

He waited patiently, nervous for the response. He wanted to fix this mess.

Lou: ...yes.

Legosi smiled at the word and sat up again, almost hitting his head on the top bunk.

Leg: I’ll be there soon.

He climbed out of bed and got himself dressed in dark clothes, with a hoodie as it was pretty cold outside. Durham and Collot were both asleep in their beds and Voss and Mizuno were playing video games quietly with each other, it looked like some kind of first person shooter.

“Hey Legosi, where you off to? It’s really late.”

“I’m just going out for a walk, don’t wait up. Then again, I bet you’ll both be awake anyways.”

The English sheepdog chuckled, taking a mouthful of an energy drink.

“You bet correctly. Catch you in a bit, dude. Be careful.”

Legosi grabbed his cigarettes, lighter and phone and made his way to Louis’ room. What was he going to say to the deer? He knew that he needed to apologise...but at the same time, he didn’t feel like he did anything wrong. This was going to be more difficult than he thought, hopefully Louis is a bit more understanding. He walked into the building and used the elevator to the top floor, then going to the cervids apartment. He noticed that it was ajar. He pushed it open and closed it behind him, seeing the state of the bathroom. What happened here...?

“Legosi, that you?”

“Yeah, it’s just me.“

“How the hell did you get in?”

“The door was open, but I’ve shut it now. You in the bedroom?”

“Yeah.”

Legosi made his way into the bedroom, seeing Louis sat up. He couldn’t help but get distracted at seeing the deer shirtless, even if he couldn’t see much. He averted his gaze and tried to not focus on that again. He stood at the doorway, a little nervous.

“You can sit down, you know. I’m not going to bite, I’m not a wolf.”

Legosi couldn’t determine whether or not that was a joke, but he brushed it off anyway and sat on the bed, he also noted that the sheets were new.

“Before you say anything, I want to apologise for my behaviour at the pool. You didn’t know how I felt and I was wrong to take it out on you, when all you were doing was being honest to me. I’m sorry, Legosi.”

Louis looked down, ashamed at his actions. He couldn’t bring himself to even look at the wolf that he hurt...that he loved. It was still a strange concept to him, but he knew that he couldn’t change it, no matter how much he would have wanted to.

“It’s okay, Louis. Really. I didn’t consider how you felt and I was wrong too. To be honest, I like you too...in that way...If it means anything...I’m glad that you were my first kiss.”

The deer stared at him, wide eyed, his heart POUNDING in his chest. He couldn’t explain how he felt, but it was along the lines of ‘immensely fucking ecstatic’.

“W-well...I’m glad to hear that. Thank you for being honest. It’s still night...are you tired?”

Legosi rubbed his neck, tail swishing softly behind him. Louis liked his tail a lot, he thought it was very cute.

“I am a little...yeah. If you want, I can leave you to sleep.”

Louis sighed and facepalmed.

“We confessed our feelings to each other and you want to leave when I’m VERY CLEARLY offering you to sleep next to me? Dumb dog.”

He couldn’t help but laugh while saying the last two words, and Legosi chuckled himself.

“If that’s okay with you...I don’t want to be a bother.”

Louis frowned and rubbed his temple, letting out a groan.

“Now you’re just playing dumb. Just get in the fucking bed before I change my mind.”

Legosi didn’t need to be told twice. His clothes, aside from underwear, were off in moments and he climbed under the covers, lying facing away from Louis. The deer shuffled over and wrapped his arm around the wolf, pressing his body against him in the same way that Jack did a couple of hours ago. Legosi enjoyed the feeling of Louis being that close to him, and he noticed that the deer was naked. Not that it was an issue, it was his own house so he could do whatever he wanted...and he wasn’t going to complain either. Louis on the other hand, felt very comfortable being this close to Legosi and snuggled up to him.

“You’re wearing boxers in my bed this time.”

“Y-yeah...?”

“I don’t understand how you can do it. Like, it’s SO uncomfortable wearing any clothing in bed. I used to wear pyjamas, but...nah, it’s just not fun.”

Fun? Legosi hoped that he didn’t mean anything sexual by that, and thankfully, Louis didn’t.

“I can take them off, if you want.”

Louis pressed his nose against the back of Legosi’s neck, gently giving him a kiss. He was very tired, and he tended to do things that he usually wouldn’t do when he was tired, like he didn’t even know he was doing it. He once had a conversation with somebody in the Horns Conglomerate for a solid fifteen minutes, thinking that they were there. His mind made up a person and they talked, but Louis was the only one in the room. Then again...he hadn’t slept for four days prior so that was expected to happen.

“Do whatever you want, I don’t mind. I just wanna snuggle a big wolfie.”

Legosi blushed deeply at his words, smiling to himself. He slipped his boxers off and dropped them down next to him on the floor, pressing his behind against Louis. Again, not in a sexual way, but a cuddly kind of way.

“S-so, when did you realise that you liked me?”

“I already ~~yawn~~ told you this...”

“You said that you couldn’t pinpoint it.”

“Exactly. What does that tell you then, hm?”

Legosi held Louis’ hand under the covers, pressing it against his chest. He didn’t say anything else, his mind was racing but at the same time, he was also quite tired still.

“So how about me, hm?”

“I think...it was the kiss. It sparked something in me, and I’ve been wanting that same feeling again, which is why I kissed-“

He was stopped, by Louis gently poking his cheek.

“Don’t talk about that right now...if that’s what you wanted though...”

He moved backwards and Legosi rolled over, facing the deer. For a moment, they said nothing and just looked into each other’s eyes. It seemed like something out of a romance novel, or a fanfiction, or even a movie. But they were both glad that they could experience this feeling for themselves. Louis closed his eyes and gently pressed his soft, warm lips against Legosi’s. It felt strange, sure, but that’s part of what made it so wonderful. Louis rubbed the wolfs back, causing his tail to swish under the covers. After a few moments, they pulled back and just looked at each other again. Suddenly, they were all over each other, exchanging tongues in sloppy yet passionate kisses. God, this felt so good, both of them thought. Legosi breathed in Louis’ scent, which drove him to kissing the deer even more. Their hands explored each other’s bodies, being mindful to not go anywhere too...sensitive, shall we say, and Louis adored the feeling of the canines fur. Thankfully, Legosi didn’t touch the injury that Louis had on his upper back, which was still quite sore but luckily, it wasn’t bleeding anymore. He playfully squeezed Legosi’s butt and giggled...a noise that Legosi had never heard before. He pulled back and had a huge grin on his face. It took Louis a few moments however, to realise why Legosi stopped kissing him. He saw the wolf’s smirk and sighed.

“Mention that to anybody and I’m going to wear you as a coat.”

“That’s fine, at least I’ll be close to you.”

“Legosi, I’m going to be INSIDE you.” He paused for a moment and thought about what he said.

“Ignore that. Don’t take it out of context.”

The canine laughed and pulled Louis into a big cuddle.

“Sure thing, although I’m not complaining.”

“You dirty dog...”

Louis fell asleep right as he finished that sentence. Legosi wanted to kiss him more, but he knew that the deer was absolutely exhausted. The past week and a bit have been very intense for the pair, and a lot of things happened quickly, including this. It didn’t seem that they would ever get a break without something big happening every single day. Still, he was happy for this event. He wasn’t sure how he felt about his sexuality still, or his feelings...but all he did know was that he just wanted to lie there and hold Louis in his arms. Anything else that life would throw at them, or was already going on...he’d deal with it later. He laid there for about ten minutes or so, listening to Louis sleep. He made a very soft snoring noise which he found to be very cute, and he noticed that the deers scent was now all over him. He felt content, and soon enough, he fell asleep too, snuggling up to the guy he loved.


	16. Chapter Fifteen

For the first morning in his life, Louis woke up without anything to worry about. The moment he gained consciousness, he felt Legosi’s fur and ruffled him gently. This woke the wolf up, and he started purring, a noise that Louis decided that he absolutely adored.

“Good morning...” 

The canine yawned softly and pulled Louis into a hug, which was returned happily.

“How did you sleep, Legosi?”

“Really well...you?”

Louis smiled at him and planted a kiss on his cheek, causing Legosi to blush a little.

“Same here, having you here really helped.”

Louis started playing with the wolf’s fur, curling his fingers around in it. It’s so soft...

“Hey, Legosi? What are we?”

He took a moment to think about it, rubbing his eyes.

“I don’t know...what would you like to be?”

“How about...well, would you like to be my carnivore boyfriend, Legosi?”

The canine didn’t answer the question. He rolled over to face Louis and kissed him on the lips softly.

“I’ll take that as a yes. I really like you, Legosi. But...we should probably keep it quiet for now, I don’t know how others will react. I’m not ashamed of you, but they might think that you’re doing it to predate me, and I don’t want that. Well, I don’t want to be eaten either but you know what I mean.”

“Mmm...we should probably get up too. We’re already two hours late for class as it is.”

Louis sat up, surprised.

“I thought we didn’t have classes today?”

“Oh yeah we do, definitely. I just didn’t want to say anything because I thought that you needed the attention more than the Professor and the rest of the class.”

Louis smiled, kissing his new boyfriend. That felt weird...but he liked it. Suddenly Louis’s phone started ringing, pulling them out of their exchange of tongues. He took the phone and answered it.

“Hello?”

“Yo, it’s Pina. You’re over two hours late, you coming to class or what?”

“Yeah, I’ll be there in a few minutes. Is the Professor pissed?”

“I don’t really know, I don’t think so. He asked about Legosi though, do you know where he is?”

He asked about Legosi? What was his fucking deal? He looked at the wolf for a moment and spoke again.

“Nah, I haven’t. I’ll see if I can get a hold of him. I’ll see you in a bit.”

He hung up, dropping the phone on the bed and sighed.

“Yeah, you’re right. We should get up. I hate to kick you out, but if you leave now and I’ll leave a few minutes after, nobody would suspect anything.”

“Ever the charmer. Of course.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Why are you both almost three hours late to my class?”

Louis walked right past the gazelle, who pushed his glasses up and crossed his arms.

“Won’t lie, overslept.”

Technically, Louis wasn’t wrong.

“What about you?”

“Oh...I didn’t realise that we had classes today. I was pretty caught up in other endeavours.”

Legosi went a little red and the Professor sighed.

“Right. My office, Louis. Everybody else, continue.”

The deer followed the Professor into the office and closed the door. He sat down and lit up a cigarette and Louis did the same, partly just to piss the gazelle off. This was my office before yours, you dick.

“I never interviewed you before. I took you at face value and didn’t believe that I needed to, but now, I do. Shall we get started?”

Louis blew out some smoke and flicked the ash into a tray, shrugging. He didn’t want to be here, but he knew that he also wanted to get under the Professor’s skin. He flicked over some paper and pulled out a pen, ready to write.

“How old are you?”

“I’m 19.”

“It states in your file that you were able to capture a killer last year. How did you manage that?”

“I didn’t really do much. Legosi did the work.”

“I see. Why did you leave him to do it?”

“I didn’t, not voluntarily. I wanted to help but he felt like he needed to do it, as revenge for his friend. I’d also told him that he needs to step up as a carnivore.”

“So, were you trying to get him to commit a predatory act?“

What the fuck? He blew out more smoke, crossing his legs.

“Absolutely not. If that was the case, he’d be in prison. I’m very persuasive.”

“It comes across as arrogance.”

“You’re one to talk.”

The Professor ignored the statement, sighing.

“What made you choose this course?”

“I chose it because I was forced into it. I don’t know if you’ve realised, but I’ve got a fucking great track record and I’m well in line to become a future Beastar.”

“You don’t want to do it, yet you put everything into your acting. Why is that?”

“I want to. Why is it your business?”

“It’s my job.”

Louis sat forward, stunning the cigarette out.

“If I recall correctly, you don’t legally work here anymore. And I’m going to ask you a few things. You lied about what happened with Legosi on my own fucking couch. What’s that about?”

“I didn’t feel like you would have liked the answer.”

“I would have preferred that to being lied to, and then you told him to keep quiet about it? What, you trying to get into Legosi’s boxers?”

“I can assure you, I have no ulterior motive with Legosi.”

“Oh yeah? Then, next time that he’s drunk, don’t rub your fucking cock all over him then! And you called him too last night. Mind telling me what that was about?”

“If you must know, I was actually telling him to let YOU know that your position within the play has been reinstated. And by the way, whether you like it or not, this is my club now. Not yours. You did a good job, but I’m taking over now. I have everybody’s best interests at heart here, which is more than what you ever did.”

Louis laughed, hiding the fact that he had so much anger building up inside of him.

“You’re an asshole.”

“Back to the questions. Do you have any medical ailments that the school or myself should know about?”

“No.”

“What is your next of kin, should there be any reason as to why they should be contacted?”

“My father, Oguma of the Horns Conglomerate. Maybe you’ve heard of him.”

The Professor stopped writing for a moment, hearing this detail. He took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes before putting them back on.

“Louis, these next questions are required to be asked of you. You may choose to not answer, but I need to ask them anyway as part of the AEA, which is the Animal Equality Act, a law that was passed this year alone. Do you understand?”

“Yes.”

“What is your religion?”

“I don’t believe in religion.”

“What is your sexuality?”

“I am gay.”

The Professor was taken aback by this a little, and it’s only something that Louis discovered for himself a few days ago...last night fully understanding it. He wrote it down anyway.

“Do you have any financial issues that the school needs to be aware of?”

“Fuck no.”

“Are you in full time education?”

“Yes.”

The Professor realised that he had asked some questions already before even reaching the AEA section, but he simply filled in the details. 

“Do you suffer with any mental illnesses, diagnosed or not?”

“No.”

“I see. Well, that will be all. Dismissed.”

Louis stood up and left the office and on his way out, he held out his middle finger to the Professor. The gazelle folded over the paper and sighed, taking his glasses off. That kid’s a real fucking piece of work.

“Hey guys, haven’t seen you in a few!”

Bill approached Louis, Legosi and Pina. Apparently Kai was sick and Dom was busy doing something in the supply closet. Everybody else was just tending to their own stations.

“What’s up, Bill?”

The tiger stood in front of the three, smiling.

“Wild night last week, Louis. Sorry that I had to leave so early.”

“Why did you have to leave?”

Pina looked at him quizzically, curious.

“Oh, I...ya know...I had a girl meeting me. Fine piece of ass too, zebra. Those stripes, man...they’re enough to drive anyone crazy.”

“I bet you’d fuck Louis if you painted him black and white.”

As it was Pina who said it, everybody took it at face value and laughed a bit about it. All the animals knew that Pina would come out with things like that.

“Yeah, yeah, whatever Pina. Plus, I’ve already got my eyes on somebody. Don’t think the feeling is reciprocated though, but that’s whatever.”

“Ooh, who are they?”

Louis laughed, trying not to look at Legosi. He knew that if he did, it would arouse suspicion...but all that Legosi wanted was to kiss him there and then. He loved his laugh and his smile.

“Oh, you’ll find out in time. You don’t know them...at least, not like I do.”

“I wanna meet her!”

“Me too, it sounds like a fun time. Maybe Bill could bring his side piece, Pina could find somebody...or I could even go with Pina and we’ll go on a six way date!”

“Pfft, NEVER happening Legosi! Do you honestly think that Bill’s ‘girlfriend’ is real?”

This caused eruptions of laughter and Bill went all defensive.

“She’s real! I’ll call her right now!”

He took out his phone and pressed the screen a few times, putting it on speakerphone.

“Welcome to AniZone voicemail, please leave a messa-“

Bill hung up and sighed.

“I...I’ll try again at a different time.”

“Yeah, yeah. Okay, we’ll take your word for it.”

Louis shook his head, mouthing the word ‘no’, stifling a giggle. Legosi couldn’t help himself but watch him, his smile would always capture him in a trance. He could look at him for hours, and just listen to his laugh. It was at this moment that Legosi realised that he was falling...hard for Louis.


	17. Chapter Sixteen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woah. Over 460 views! I’m totally blown away at how many of you are reading It’s Only Instinct. I cannot thank you enough!

Louis was in the kitchen, cutting up some celery for himself. Legosi was hanging out with Jack and Voss back in their own room so Louis was having a day for himself to relax. He sliced the vegetable into big chunks before putting them into a bowl with some carrot sticks and carried them into the living room, curling up on the couch. He put a carrot and celery stick together and took a bite out of both. He loved these two and as much as he enjoyed cooking, this was his favourite thing to eat. Suddenly, his phone started ringing and he picked it up, looking at the caller ID. Shit. He sighed and answered it, not looking forward to this.

“Hello, father.”

The deer on the other side of the phone sounded a little annoyed, but then again he always did when he spoke with Louis.

“Hello, Louis. I noticed that you spent over 40,000 yen. Tell me what that was on.”

Of course, it was something about money. It wasn’t to check on Louis to see how he is, or how classes are going so he decided to mention it.

“Oh yes I’m fine, thanks for asking. Classes are going good. I trust that you are well.”

“Louis, we never use formalities. I do not understand why you’re doing so now.”

The younger buck bit into another piece of celery, chewing it slowly.

“Okay father. If you MUST know, I had an event with a few friends.”

“You are not supposed to have friends. Relationships will stand in the way of your career. I advise you to cut ties with them, and that isn’t a request.”

“That’s not going to happen! I have a-“

Thankfully, Louis was cut off from finishing that sentence and he was mentally glad that his father was an obnoxious prick..

“I do not wish to hear it, Louis. Don’t spend my money again.”

And with that, he hung up. Fuck him, Louis thought. If he wanted to spend the money that he was very well entitled to as the sole heir to the Horns Conglomerate, then he will. He hated his father with a passion. What was he going to do, anyways, write him out of the will as the heir? If Oguma was really going to do that then he wouldn’t have bought Louis in the first place from the Black Alley Market. He put the bowl down and lit up a cigarette, sighing exasperatedly.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“So what’s the deal with you and Louis, hm? You’ve been going out to see him quite a lot. You guys finally friends?”

Legosi took a mouthful of water and nodded, swallowing.

“Mmh. Yeah, we realised that we had more in common than we thought, and there’s no reason to be hating each other.”

Jack flicked over a page in the manga he was reading and Legosi opened a bag of chips, eating one with a soft crunch.

“Did it have anything to do with the kiss?”

The wolf pretended to think for a moment, knowing full well that the kiss started their relationship. Boyfriends...he liked that...

“Uh, I’m not sure. It may have done, I don’t really know. I suppose it’s a plausible reason.”

“Anything else happening between you two, hm?”

Jack. Stop asking questions. Please. Legosi feigned ignorance (played dumb).

“What do you mean by that?“

He took another chip and chewed on it for a moment.

“Well...you know what I mean...”

His tone was so playful that even a brick would have probably guessed what he meant.

“N-no, we’re just starting to become friends. After the other night, we haven’t really spoken. I don’t know what to say to him.”

“Well, how do you feel about what he said?”

Fuck it. He trusted Jack. Louis wouldn’t mind, right?

“Jack...the truth is...me and Louis are seeing each other.”

“Well duh, I know that! You always have his scent all over you as well as cigarette smoke, presumably to cover it up. The reason I cuddled up to you was to mask it so others wouldn’t get suspicious. I just wanted to actually hear it from you.”

Oh. Alright then. Well, that wasn’t as bad as Legosi thought it would be. To be honest, it felt kind of relieving to tell somebody. He just wanted to scream it to the world. He REALLY fucking loved Louis.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

There was a knock on the door and Jack jumped off his bed and walked over to it, opening up. He wasn’t surprised to see the deer, although his clothing choice caught him off guard. He’d never seen Louis wearing punk rock clothing before.

“Hello, Jack. Is Legosi here?”

He stood there awkwardly, rubbing his neck. Louis didn’t know that Jack knew about their relationship.

“Oh, uh, yeah. He’s right in here, come in.”

“Actually, I was kinda hoping that I could talk to him alone?”

Jack turned to see Legosi and he smirked at him before turning back the the deer.

“Of course!” The Labrador started to leave the room when he leaned in close to Louis, whispering in his ear.

“Don’t get your scent on everything, the other guys don’t know about you both.”

He winked and left Louis alone with his canine friend.

“S-so...I take it you told him?”

He went to sit down on Legosi’s bed and the wolf pulled him through the curtains, closing them behind his boyfriend.

“He actually kinda figured it out for himself, he only told me that about fifteen minutes ago. So, what did you wanna come and see me about?”

Louis started playing with his fingers, fidgeting nervously. Was it getting warm in here? He took his jacket off and crumpled it on the floor, pushing it trough the curtains.

“My father called me earlier. He wants me to cut all ties with everybody. I’m not allowed friends, which means that I’m not permitted to have a relationship.”

Legosi’s heart sank and he withdrew into himself a little, moving his tail away from Louis.

“I understand. Thanks for coming to tell me about-“

Louis tapped Legosi on the leg a little.

“No no no, don’t worry! I hate him so I’m not going to let him control my life, especially when you’re involved.”

He leaned over and kissed his partner, both of them lying down while holding each other.

“Why is it that we’ve been back here for about three weeks and so much has happened? Can we not just live peacefully and enjoy ourselves?”

“Hey, not all the things that happened are bad. I mean...I’ve got you.”

The wolf pressed his nose against Louis’, causing the cervid to giggle. His tail started swishing about and Louis started stroking it. Legosi made a strange little noise in response.

“That’s the cutest noise ever, Legosi.”

His face went a little red and he replied simply by pressing his lips against his partners neck, earning himself a more playful laugh.

“H-hey, quit it, that tickles!”

Legosi stuck his tongue out and licked up and around his neck, having good intentions.

“Mmfh~”

Legosi pulled back and, realising the noise that he just made, Louis laid there with his mouth open a little, seemingly paralysed.

“Ignore that. Don’t ever think about that.”

“But why? I think it’s lovely.”

Legosi did it again, not that Louis protested much.

“Haah, Legosi~”

He inhaled sharply, very much so enjoying the feeling of his lovers tongue. They pulled each other’s shirts off, admiring one another’s bodies. He pulled Legosi into a half cuddle, exposing his neck a little more but then he stopped.

“Uh, Louis? What’s on your back?“

Shit...I didn’t want him to see that...

“Oh, it’s nothing. I had a little bit of an accident, that’s all. I’m okay.”

Legosi wasn’t believing it, his concern grew massively and he started to develop dark thoughts.

“I...I didn’t do that to you...did I?”

Louis pulled the canine into a caring cuddle, kissing him gently.

“No, of course you didn’t. I’m sure you’d feel differently if you did seeing that you’d have the taste for meat, or at the very least you’d develop withdrawal symptoms. That can happen so simply from tasting a single drop of herbivore blood, it’ll really drive a carnivore mad.”

He was right. Louis knew about it all because he was sold as livestock after all, he’s very savvy with the Black Alley Market. The wolf nodded and believed Louis, he didn’t feel like he would lie to him...although Legosi lied to him. He hoped that he could make up for it eventually.

“Yeah, you’re right. Well, where were we?”

The deer smirked at him and winked, rubbing Legosi’s chest fur.

“I do believe we were somewhere around here...”

Louis leaned in and kissed Legosi again, allowing his tongue to slide against the wolfs. Suddenly, they are interrupted by a knock at the door and they separated, sighing.

“No time alone for us, hm?”

Legosi stood up, leaving Louis on his bed and he approached the door, twisting the handle and pulling it open.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

He dialled a number, putting the binoculars down.

“It’s me.”

“Good to hear from you. I trust that everything is in order?”

“It is ready. How long?”

“Ten to fifteen minutes. In and out.”

“I see. Are you sure that you know what you’re getting?”

“Positive.”

“Don’t screw this up. I will meet you at the drop off site in an hour. Are you going to hold up your end of the deal?”

“Positive.”

“How can I trust you?”

“It is better that you don’t trust me.”


	18. Chapter Seventeen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> GORE WARNING!

Legosi opened his eyes and found himself lying on the floor. His head was pounding, and he couldn’t remember anything. Maybe he fell? He climbed to his feet and rubbed his head where it hurt. Legosi checked in his bed and found that Louis wasn’t there, and neither was his jacket. He looked at his phone to see if Louis had tried contacting him. Three missed calls and a few texts.

Lou: LEGOSI ANSWER!

Lou: HELP ME FOR FUCKS SAKE!!!

Lou: LIONS! GET THE PROFESSOR!

OH FUCK!

“SHIT!”

The last thing that Legosi remembered was opening a door, seeing a lion in all black. He tried calling Louis but the call went to answerphone after a few rings.

He stood outside of the drama club, hammering the door as hard as he could. What the fuck was he going to say? Half an hour ago and they were making out on the wolfs bed! The door opened and the gazelle stood there, holding a clipboard.

“Legosi? What can I do for you at this hour?”

He saw the expression on Legosi’s face and his eyes went wide, he knew something was up.

“L-Louis has been kidnapped!”

The Professor shook his head in disbelief.

“What?! Are you sure? How do you know this?”

“I-I don’t know! All I know is that I was knocked out by a lion and then Louis is gone! I woke up on the floor and I saw these texts o-on m...my...my...”

He was unable to control himself, the reality of the situation kicking in. He collapsed to the floor and started bawling his eyes out, shaking violently. The Professor took the phone out of his hand and started reading through it and he pulled Legosi to his feet, completely disregarding the clipboard which he dropped to the floor.

“We can find where he is if he still has his phone on him. Come on!“ 

Both males went into the office hurriedly and the Professor opened up his laptop, typing. Then he plugged Legosi’s phone in, tapped the screen and called Louis, the phone ringing on speaker. A bunch of code came up on the screen, nothing that Legosi could understand.

“What are you doing?”

“I’m hacking into a satellite, Legosi! If I can connect to it, it should be able to bounce the call from Louis’ phone TO the satellite, right to this radar on the screen!“

“B-but...that’s the entire planet...how do you have access to this?!”

The Professor lit a cigarette and started smoking it, still typing furiously. He pushed his glasses up on his nose.

“I don’t have legal access, and I’m pretty certain that I’m committing a BUNCH of felonies for this!”

Legosi watched in dismay as the globe in the screen kept spinning, but then a red dot appeared, causing the professor to chuckle.

“We’ve got him!”

He magnified the location, his fingers smashing against the keys as he worked his magic. Oh Louis...I hope that you’re safe...

“Legosi, I’m gonna need your phone! I need to download the precise GPS data from the satellite so we can follow his phone for as long as it’s on! I just hope he charged it...”

The Professor unplugged the phone and out the cigarets in his mouth, grabbing Legosi’s arm and dashing out the door.

“Come on!”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

He coughed, some blood spattering onto the floor. His whole body hurt agonisingly. He felt like he was going to pass out, but he knew he shouldn’t. If he did, he’d die. He needed to stay awake. His antlers were yanked hard, causing him to scream in pain.

“I like my meat tenderised before I eat it, and the future Beastar is going to taste beautifully!”

The attacker growled and smiled, baring his fangs. Louis received another fist to his face and then his stomach, causing him to cough and choke. He wanted to fight back, but he was tied to the chair, which in turn was bolted to the floor. He lowered his head, exhausted. He didn’t know what to do.

“Aw, is that all? I thought that you’d have more fight in you.”

The attacker punched Louis again, clawing his face which caused the deer to shout out in pain, blood dripping to the floor. Suddenly, an animal that Louis deduced quickly to be a lion, got closer to him, gripping his antlers again. Louis tried to struggle but it was completely futile.

“Now now, we can’t let this go to waste.”

He planted his tongue on the actors face and licked up the trail of blood, sending shivers throughout Louis’ whole body. He was breathing heavily, and struggling to stay awake. I don’t know if I can keep on fighting.

...Maybe this is a good thing, I won’t have to become the next Beastar and I can finally escape my fucking life...fuck you, father...

He didn’t even think about Legosi in this moment. All he could think about was that he was going to die and it was impossible for him to think of anything else.

“K...k-kill m...e...kill...kill me...”

The lion looked at him with adoration.

“See, now you finally get it. Us carnivores are the dominant species, not you. We eat YOU. We’re stronger than YOU. And you know what?! I’m. Going. To. Eat. You. ALIVE!”

With every word after the question, he was punched harder than the last. The large carnivore came down to his knees right in front of Louis and opened his mouth, but then Louis head butted him, ripping out one of his eyes with his antlers with a disgustingly loud squelching sound. If it wasn’t for the adrenaline, he surely would have vomited. The lion screamed out in agony, letting out a very loud roar and he held his eye, or lack of, rather.

“You fucker! Oh, I’m going to enjoy eating you, you little shit! FUCK!”

He brought his fist to Louis’ face again, giving him an instantly massive black eye, and he grunted in pain, spitting some more blood onto the floor. He didn’t know how much longer he could hold out. Something snapped like wood and he felt like one of his antlers were broken off the top of his head. His shirt was torn off his body, his torso was bruised, fur stained with blood and covered in cuts. He’d lost a lot of blood and unless he got immediate medical attention, he wouldn’t survive. The lion growled and approached him again, this time suddenly freeing Louis of the chair before throwing him against the wall, falling to the floor. He tried to move, he really did but it was no use. His attacker pounced on top of him and tried going for his neck but Louis raised his arm, which the large carnivore bit into instead. Louis screamed out in pure agonising pain, feeling himself slowly become weaker while his blood flowed onto the floor in front of him. This is it, I’m really going to die. I never even told him that I loved him.. He saw the door open behind the lion and then blacked out.

He opened his eyes again to see a blurry vision of two creatures fighting, one being his kidnapper, but he couldn’t quite make out the other. It was like something he’d never seen before. They were clawing, biting, punching and kicking each other at every chance that they’d gotten. The room was filled with sounds of attacks, grunts and those of pain. His breathing was very shallow and he didn’t know how much longer he could hold out, considering that he was lying in a pool of blood, unable to do anything. With one more punch, he saw one of the two lunge forwards and bite the other around the throat, before ripping it out. Blood sprayed all over them and the room as the dying animal clutched their throat and fell to the floor, red liquid pooling as he choked and suffocated to death. One of the two silhouettes came towards Louis with speed and knelt down next to him. His vision was too messed up, he couldn’t see them clearly.

“Louis?! Oh my God, we found you! We need to get you out of here!” 

Wait a fucking second...no way...

“L-Le...Legosi...?”

He was picked up bridal style and he shakily raised his hand to point to his jacket in the corner, which his rescuer picked up, as well as his gun. The wolf wasn’t even surprised at the fact that Louis had a gun...does he get into this much trouble all the time? The door opened again and Louis couldn’t see who it was, but he could see that he was holding a gun themselves. Legosi stood still, staring at the lion.

“Where do you think you’re going with my meal, huh kid?! Oh, it’s you!”

Within a split second, faster than Louis could make out, a shot was fired and the lion fell to the floor, holding his arm and screaming. WHAT THE FUCK?? WHERE DID THAT COME FROM, LEGOSI?!

“You fucking kid! I’m gonna kill you for that!”

He tried getting up but another shot rang out and the lion dropped face down, blood pooling on the floor around the body. The second shadow emerged from the darkness, wielding a handgun.

“P-Professor...?”

“It’s alright Louis, we’ve got you. Just hang in there...jeez, he’s messed up bad.”

“These guys we’re going to eat him...oh my God...who are they?”

The Professor tucked the gun into his belt line and covered it up.

“They’re called the Shishigumi, a Back Alley Market gang that specialise in killing and eating herbivores or something! They’re all lions and they believe that they’re at the top of the food chain in society. Fucking hell, Louis...how did you get yourself tangled up with these animals?! I’ve got a friend who can help us, he doesn’t live too far away from here and he’s a doctor...of sorts. Legosi, grab that!”

He pointed to something on the floor, but Louis couldn’t see what it was. His whole body was just screaming at him to die, but he had a reason to live and that was right in front of him. The wolf picked it up and made a few gagging noises, stopping himself from vomiting.

“Wrap it in Louis’ jacket, fuck!”

As the Professor carried Louis up the stairs, he felt himself draining.

“Shit, he’s lost so much blood! We need to get there quickly! Legosi, type in GMTC and get the directions!”

After a few more moments of struggling to stay awake, Louis gave in and closed his eyes.

Legosi...Professor...


	19. Chapter Eighteen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’d like to apologise for the delay. After writing out this chapter twice, accumulating a total of nine hours of writing time, AO3 crashed and I lost it all when I was halfway through a sentence and last night, I wrote it out in google documents. Guess what fucking crashed too. Now I have to write this out ANOTHER time. As you can imagine, I’m extremely pissed off.

It had been eight hours since Louis was brought into the clinic, bloody and beaten within an inch of his life, barely breathing. The Professor made contact with his friend and gave Louis to him, who laid the deer out on a stretcher and hurriedly wheeled him off into a surgery room. Legosi didn’t even go in with Louis, he broke down outside and just cried to himself. Passing animals didn’t pay much attention to him, they presumed that since he was crying outside of a clinic, he lost someone. The Professor came out and helped Legosi inside, who was in a huge state of shock. He helped him into his friends office and there they sat, waiting, restless. The panda came in, pulling some rubber gloves off which were stained red. Legosi sniffed the air...that’s Louis’ scent...that’s his blood...the doctor sat down with a sigh and lit up two cigarettes for himself and the Professor and then offered one to Legosi, who refused. He felt like it he consumed anything, including smoke, he’d throw up.

“He’s resting right now, you got him here at the right time. But I want to know, why the fuck is a deer in my clinic who’s almost dead?”

He eyed up Legosi, who kept his head down.

“Wolf. That blood...I bet you did it. Why?”

The Professor stepped in for Legosi here.

“Gouhin, he didn’t do it. Louis was kidnapped and we found him in a basement surrounded by a bunch of lions. Legosi came to me for help because Louis tried contacting him.”

“I thought that you looked familiar, but I wasn’t sure. Legosi, I’d like to say it’s good to see you again but...circumstances. You’re always bringing trouble here.”

The Professor looked at both of them quizzically.

“You both know each other?”

Gouhin crossed one leg over the other, inhaling some smoke and nodded.

“Oh sure, last year this kid, this fucking kid came here and I trained him to take down a killer at his school. Cherryton is fucked up. Did you get him?”

Legosi simply nodded, unable to say anything.

“I know your nature, kid. Sorry for accusing ya, I’m sure you can understand why I jumped to that conclusion. Professor, you might want to wash yourself and get the blood off you. Same for you, Legosi. This is the favour that I owe you. I’m gonna clear up that mess and do what I can for Louis. It doesn’t seem good though, he is going to have permanent scars on his face and body, his right ear isn’t gonna grow back. If you brought it here, I would be able to stitch it back, maybe.”

The Professor took the jacket off Legosi and unraveled it, revealing an antler and the rest of the deer’s ear. The panda took it and examined it closely before putting it back down.

“I’m sorry, but this is too fucked up. I wouldn’t be able to stitch it in this position, it’s mangled to all Hell. His antler will grow back, so that’s a plus, I suppose. Now, you said about lions...”

“Yeah, the Shishigumi.”

Upon hearing that word, Gouhin stood up and approached the door.

“I’m not getting myself involved in that, Professor. You can’t be bringing them to my door, so I’m gonna need you both to leave the moment that we determine whether Louis is going to survive or not. The debt’s repaid, Professor. I’ll keep him here under my protection if he recovers, but then I’m gonna have to let him go. I’ll drive him to Cherryton myself to keep him safe through the Back Alley Market, but I’m sorry. I’ve got another client to see and then I’ll check up on your friend. There’s food and water in the refrigerator next to the cupboard over there.”

“Thank you Gouhin.”

With that, he left and closed the door. Legosi heard everything that was said, but found himself unable to talk.

“Hey, Legosi. I’m sorry that you had to witness that. Look, whatever happens, happens. We did our best for Louis, and we certainly stopped him from being killed back there. Why don’t you try to get some rest? We’ll leave tomorrow, depending on how he is. Gouhin owes me that much.”

Legosi curled up in a ball in the chair, still shaking. Louis...I’m so sorry...this was going to be a long night for all of them.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Do you wanna fucking run by me what the hell happened there?!”

“Number Four was rescued.”

“YEAH I SAW THAT FROM THE CAMERAS!”

“Then why are you asking me?”

“Why the fuck were your associates trying to kill him?”

“You’re kidding, right? Put a bunch of sadistic lions in the same room as a vulnerable deer, they’re going to do that.”

“THE KID ALMOST DIED!”

“THREE OF MY FRIENDS DIED SO DON’T FUCKING LECTURE ME! I’ve now got to bury Han, Kiko and Quall.”

“I never asked you to kidnap him!”

“Actually, yes you did. In and out, remember?”

“Fuck off.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“He’s in here.”

Legosi and the Professor followed Gouhin into a room and they saw Louis on the bed, and Legosi almost threw up, seeing the state of his lover. He looked so strange without his ear and antler, his left eye was almost completely black and he had a cut on his nose, a few on his right cheek and his neck looked torn to shit. His right arm showed clear bite marks from when Louis defended himself, and there was a lot of fur missing from him.

“Oh, Louis...I’m so sorry...”

“H-hey, Legosi...Professor...sorry that you have to see me like this...”

The wolf went to his side and held his hand, rubbing softly with his thumb.

“I can’t hear well out of my right side, but I’m sure that I’ll adjust to it. Are you both okay?”

The gazelle stepped forwards and placed a hand on the injured cervids shoulder, smiling softly but sadly.

“Only you can worry about others when you almost died...we’re okay. I’m glad we got to you in time...”

The deer chuckled but stopped, grimacing in pain.

“F-fuck...Legosi, I’m really tired. I know you just came in here, but I want to rest. Please go to my apartment and stay there, the key is in my jacket. Professor, talk to Principal Gon and tell him everything that happened. Spare no detail. The doc says that I might be out in a few days, if I heal well. I’m sorry...but I need to rest.”

“I love you, Lou.”

The Professor looked at the wolf, who was struggling to hole back tears and he smiled sadly.

“I love you too, Legosi.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Four days had passed since they left Louis in the clinic and upon hearing that he would be returning today, Legosi started to cook some dinner for him. It wasn’t much, it was a celery soup with a few carrot slices dunked in. It wasn’t fully ready yet, but he knew how he would arrange it. He missed Louis, and he’d been awake for five nights in a row. He couldn’t sleep, knowing what had happened. He didn’t think about the murders he witnessed as much as he should have, the only thing that occupied his mind was his boyfriend. There was a knock at the door and he went over to answer it, opening it up. In the hallway stood a certain deer, smiling sweetly. His injuries had healed pretty well and his antler was starting to grow back. The black eye had faded, but it seemed that the cuts in his face and neck were going to be more permanent.

“Hey, you.”

“Hello.”

“Mind if I ask what you’re doing here?”

“Oh, you know. I’m just cooking a meal for my boyfriend who’s coming back from the hospital today. He’s a real fighter and I’m so proud of him.”

Louis smiled and wiped his eyes, both of them just wanting to hug each other and cry.

“I see, well I’ve got to shoot off too. My wolf lover is making me a meal actually, too and I need to go and see him. Maybe we can meet up at another time?”

Legosi leaned forwards and pulled Louis into a loving and gentle kiss before taking his hand, leading him into the apartment.

“Smells good, love. What’re you making?”

“Oh, nothing special, just a celery soup with carrot sticks. I hope you like it.”

“Heh, that’s my two favourite foods, carrot and celery. You’re my favourite in every other category though.”

Legosi smiled and went into the kitchen.

“Take a seat Lou, it’ll be ready in a second.”

The deer took his jacket and shoes off, putting the gun on the table. Did...did he kill...? He took a few moments to organise himself and he sat down, taking in the familiar surroundings, feeling safe again for the first time in a long time. Legosi did well to clean up and maintain the hygiene. The wolf walked in holding two bowls, carrot sticks poking out the top. He was about to put them down when his eyes laid upon the handgun on the table and he froze.

“U-um...Louis...could you, uh, m-move that...please?”

He looked at his partner quizzically for a moment and then realised, cursing and then throwing it to the furthest part of the couch, feeling embarrassed.

“Sorry...”

Legosi placed the bowl down in front of him and kissed him gently, happy to finally be able to kiss him again.

“It’s alright, don’t worry. Please, eat.”

Louis raised a spoon and blew it a little before putting the liquid in his mouth. He looked at Legosi and smirked before pretending to hate it.

“Oh eewwewewewewew! That’s nasty, did you fish this out of the sewer?”

Legosi chuckled to himself.

“Yeah I did, I thought it would be unique.“

“Well, it’s lovely Legosi. You did a really good job with this. Maybe you should cook for me more often.”

“But you’re the better one at cooking here.”

“But I’m your injured deer, I need you to take care of me and that includes cooking all my meals!”

He pointed to his ear in protest, hoping that he’d convince Legosi. They both ate a little bit more and even Legosi was surprised about how well it tasted.

“Sure thing, deer.”

Both of them laughed at the wordplay pun and continued to eat their dinner.

After about fifteen minutes, Louis had finally finished. Legosi finished first but it was common knowledge that canines eat a lot quicker.

“Hey, why don’t you go on into bed? I’ll be there in a moment.”

He didn’t need to be told twice. As his partner took the bowls into the kitchen, he made his way into the bedroom, finally happy to be home. He took off all of his clothes and bundled them up next to his bed, ready for laundry day and he climbed into bed. Legosi came in a few moments after and removed his shirt and jeans, climbing into bed too.

“Legosi...my bed’s a no underwear zone. It gets way too hot and I don’t want my room smelling of wet dog.”

“But you’d prefer it to smell like dry dog, right?”

“Of course. Hey, I need to use the bathroom. I’ll be back in a minute, okay?”

The wolf nodded and kissed him and then the deer climbed out of bed, still in pain a bit. The canine couldn’t help but pay attention to his body, his back, legs...his lovely butt.

“Mmh, love the view from here.”

Louis turned his head and winked, wiggling his tail a little before going into the bathroom. He looked at himself in the mirror and his smile instantly vanished. He found himself staring at his cuts, tracing his finger along them, wincing a little.

“F-fuck...”

Next, he looked down at his body, ignoring his modesty. He was paying more attention to the scars all over his chest. He felt disgusting, and he felt bad for Legosi. He had to look at all of this when he would look at Louis. For the first time in a long time, his emotions took over and he leaned against the wall, sliding down before crying, burying his face into his knees. His body was shaking a little and he found himself crying quietly. Then the anger kicked in.

“You’re a fucking idiot, Louis! Look at yourself, you’re a horrible mess!”

He felt so angry and disappointed with himself, and he wished that he died back in that basement.

“Louis? Louis, you o-oh God, Louis!“

Legosi pokes his head through the doorway and upon seeing his lover sobbing on the floor, he instantly went down next to him and pulled him into a cuddle, rocking him gently.

“I’ve got you, Louis. You’re alright, I’ve got you.”

Legosi didn’t pay attention to the fact that they were both fully exposed to each other for the first time ever, all he cared about was being there for him. He kissed his forehead and kept rocking him gently. Louis was now fully bawling his eyes out, heavy sobs wracking his entire body, which hurt him and then would in turn, make him cry more.

“I’m fucking disgusting! I’m so messed up! Look at me!”

“Louis, no you’re not. I love you, and I’m here for you.”

“Why the fuck are you even here?! Look at me, why do you say that you love me when I look like this?! I don’t have a fucking ear and I’m covered in scars! Leave me alone Legosi!”

The wolf simply cuddled him more, refusing to let go. Oh, Louis...

“Louis, stop! I want to be here for you. I don’t care about your physical ailments, I love you for you, alright?!”

Louis stopped sobbing now, and downgraded to crying, calming down a little.

“I-I’m sorry...I’m sorry Legosi...”

“Hey, look at me please.”

Louis lifted up his head, and Legosi wiped away his tears, leaving just the sniffles. He leaned down and kissed him on the lips softly, trying to reassure him. Louis pulled away, ashamed of himself.

“Hey. I love you. Being in this floor isn’t going to help so I’m going to lift you to the bed, okay?”

Louis nodded, wiping his face again. He felt embarrassed, knowing that he was naked.

“I’m sorry...”

He was picked up carefully, bridal style and Legosi carried him to the bedroom, laying him down and then he got in next to him.

“I’m sorry that you saw me naked...”

“Lou, stop apologising for this. I love you and I love your body, okay? I’m going to cuddle you, okay?”

Louis nodded, feeling calmer now.

“I-I love your body too, but I didn’t see anything, if that helps...“

Legosi cuddled up to him, kissing his neck softly.

“I don’t care what you see, I’m just here for you.”


	20. Chapter Nineteen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so it turns out that I’ve completely forgotten to actually change the publication date on all of the chapters, I just kinda breezed past it. It’s gonna look weird, being a sudden four day change but I hope it doesn’t affect anything considering that I’ve almost thrown out twenty chapters in four days for you guys. Oh yeah, NSFW warning. This is going to be a shorter chapter than usual, because I need to have a break. Being this consistent is gonna end up killing me, especially after last night and today with Chapter Eighteen...but I should be okay soon.

Louis rolled over, facing Legosi and he started to kiss him, letting their tongues envelop one another, the warm feeling being pleasant and alluring for both of them. Legosi placed one of his hands on the deers waist, rubbing up and down gently.

“Mmm, that feels nice...”

Louis was now calmer from ten minutes ago, which was good and he understood that Legosi wouldn’t be leaving him anytime soon.

“L-Louis...I want to do something for you...”

The wolf slid under the covers, leaving licks and kisses down his boyfriends chest to his waist, causing Louis to gasp a little.

“W-what’re you...?”

“Shh, just let me do this. I wanna take your mind off everything...”

Legosi couldn’t believe what he was about to do, he’d never done it before. He came across Louis’ modesty, his scent becoming intoxicating. He didn’t know what came over him, but he took a pretty hard body part in his hand, massaging softly. Wow...he’s pretty fucking huge...

Louis gasped and let out a quiet moan, a surprisingly soft one.

“A-ah, Legosi...”

He closed his eyes, allowing the pleasure to take over as his partner rubbed up and down his shaft, an intense feeling building up in his body. He didn’t feel nervous...he just wanted the wolf. After a few moments, Legosi started to lick him, making the deer shudder.

“Mmh, oh fuck...”

Knowing that his lover was enjoying it, he took Louis’ whole length in his mouth, feeling his own cock pulsate. He bobbed his head up and down, tasting, licking and feeling his partner hitting the back of his throat. Luckily, he didn’t have a gag reflex, as he discovered in that moment. Louis was writhing a little, bucking his hips. The wetness of Legosi’s mouth added to the sensuality. God, that felt amazing...Louis let out a shallow and broken exhale, clearly enjoying it. Legosi pulled away and Louis felt a hand on his member, and then Legosi started to jerk at quite a considerable speed, sending the deer into a bit of a shock, absolutely adoring the sensations.

“Oh fuck, Legosi~!”

The canine kept his movements consistent and the deer kept moaning, feeling a sense of pleasure overwhelm him. But it was when Legosi went back to worshipping Louis with his tongue that he really started getting into it. He pressed one hand on the back of Legosi’s head and threw the covers off them, desiring to see what it looked like. As expected, the sight of Legosi taking in his member was turning him on even more and he started pushing Legosi down, thrusting up into his partners throat. He felt himself starting to get close, so he tapped Legosi.

“H-hey...I-I’m gonna finish...”

Legosi pulled back and licked his lips, winking at his partner before diving back down as far as he could, his snout pushing gently against Louis’ navel, and he couldn’t contain himself anymore. His face went quite red and he thrust up once more, moaning very loudly.

“Oh God Legosi, I’m coming! Fuck! Mmfh!~”

With that, the pleasure took over and he spilled his seed deep into the wolfs throat, bucking his hips and gripping the bed with his left hand. Legosi felt a warm liquid hitting his throat and filling his mouth, but he kept moving and swallowing as much of it as he could, clearly enjoying himself too. It felt so good knowing that he could pleasure Louis like this...his noises were mesmerising. After a few more moments, Legosi pulled away and licked a couple more times, making sure to keep things from being messy and Louis rode out his orgasm, shaking slightly, letting out small gasps and moans until the pleasure subsided. He felt a little embarrassed at how quickly he finished, and that his lover just did...that...to him. The canine moved back up the bed, his own erection extremely prominent and Louis blushed at seeing him, a feeling in his heart screaming at him to touch it. He pushed the wolf onto his back and sat up, taking his cock in his hand.

“H-hey...Louis...ohhh...”

It felt so strange for the deer to touch somebody else, especially a wolf. Thankfully, there wasn’t much of a difference between the two aside from size, but that was expected with a wolf and deer comparison. Nonetheless, he started rubbing up and down, biting his lip as he withdrew some small noises from the large dog. He picked up the pace a little and watched Legosi’s face to see his reactions to it. The wolf bit his lip and tried stifling a moan, but it didn’t work and Louis felt like he just fell deeper in love with him right then.

“I see that you’re already a little drippy, you enjoying yourself there?~”

“Mmh, y-yes Louis...ohh...”

He smirked and leaned down to kiss his partner, tasting a tang of saltiness in his lovers lips but he didn’t mind, he was way too caught up in the moment. Legosi let out a small moan into the kiss, huffing slightly. Louis then bent over, leaning down and took Legosi’s hard cock in his own mouth, moving up and down while pressing his lips together to create some tight yet wet friction. Legosi looked at him through half lidded eyes and saw that the deer had exposed his butt to him, and Legosi’s heart jumped. He reached out and started playing with him, enjoying the soft and slightly squishy feeling while getting blown by the deer. Soon after, he could feel his own orgasm building up and his breathing became erratic, moans becoming more prominent now.

“L-Louis...I’m getting close...~”

The deer heard him and took it in his stride, pushing his head down as much as he could and Legosi started to buck his hips into his lovers mouth, his feelings becoming more intense. With an intensely loud and sensual moan, Legosi released a few solid streams of his own liquid into Louis’ mouth, who struggled to swallow it all but he barely managed to. He felt his partner pulsating in his mouth and he certainly loved it. Louis felt strange about it, and it certainly didn’t taste as pleasant as he expected but he took as much of it as he could, wiggling his butt a little for the canines enjoyment as his climax slowly became to calm down. After a few moments, Louis pulled away, and with a final lick, he pulled himself back up to his lover, both of them panting a little.

“H-holy shit, Lou...that’s amazing...”

The cervid chuckled, still tasting his partner.

“Mmh, you’re very good at that. The taste isn’t the best, though.”

Legosi laughed, wrapping one arm around Louis, nodding his head.

“Yeah, I agree. Maybe it would be better if we were drunk, we might not taste it so much.”

“Yeah...I love you Legosi...you really did make me feel good.”

The larger animal kissed Louis on the cheek and cuddles up to him.

“You know...I was just wondering. Which one of us is the more...um...submissive one?”

Louis stared at him and chuckled.

“You don’t honestly think that I’m the submissive one, do you?”

Legosi smiled, although he felt a little nervous.

“Alright, alright. Either way, I love you.”

“I love you too, Legosi. You’re my big wolf, and I‘M your deer.”

“Yes you are, deer.”

He put emphasis into the final word, letting him know that it was a play on the word ‘dear’ and Louis laughed to himself.

“I think we should get some sleep, it’s been...busy, and I just want to fall asleep with you again.”

The pair cuddled up to each other, Legosi being mindful of his wounds. Hey was surprised that they even had that type of sexual interaction, but they both knew that it was just the beginning, and it would happen many more times to come. Legosi was the first one to fall asleep, Louis wanted to make sure that he was alright, and he missed hearing his cute snoring. A few minutes later, he fell asleep too with a warm smile on his face.


	21. Interval

Hey everybody, NinesKnives here. I hope that you’re all well, but I feel like I need to address something. I KNOW that my chapters aren’t long. I KNOW that It’s Only Instinct isn’t the most descriptive fanfiction out there, but I’m doing my best. I’m a 19 year old kid who has a lot of stuff going on in my life and I’m doing the best that I can. I’m solo writing It’s Only Instinct and sometimes I find it difficult to articulate my words and put them down here. There are many things that I need to dive into and I will be hopefully implementing things into chapters coming up and I am struggling to throw out so many chapters in a day. Because the chapter number things are a little messed up and I’m new to AO3, this will now display as Chapter 21. Chapter Twenty will now be shown as Chapter 22, but please remember that there are two personal notes from me and the list will be two numbers ahead of the actual story.

Thanks for reading It’s Only Instinct, and I hope to see you all in my Discord server: 

https://discord.gg/Xxs5KSW


	22. Chapter Twenty

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Blood warning and a couple of surprises. That’s all I’m gonna say.

Two lions wearing black formal suits walked into the office. One of them had a few scars along his right eye and he seemed to be angry.

“Boss, what the actual fuck was that about? A DEER got away from us!”

Another lion took his glasses off, slamming his fist on the table.

“EXCUSE ME? DO YOU WANNA FUCKING RUN THAT BY ME AGAIN?! HOW DARE YOU COME IN HERE TALKING TO ME LIKE THAT, FREE?! The fucking AUDACITY!”

His bellowing voice caused the lion now identified as Free to lower his head.

“Sorry boss.”

“So you fucking should be! Now, are you seriously insinuating that this single deer who was TIED UP, may I add, broke out of his restraints, MURDERED three of us and got away?! I saw the fucking footage, a wolf and a gazelle helped him! I want them found and I want them brought here.”

The second lion, unnamed spoke up.

“We got the deer from Cherryton high school, that may be where he is.”

The boss put his glasses on, rubbing his mane.

“I see. Thank you for that information. Dismissed. Oh, and Free. If you ever speak to me like that again, you’ll get more than a couple of scars.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Yawning, Louis opened his eyes and was once again brought to consciousness. For a moment, he felt perfectly okay. He had his wolf next to him after an amazing sexual encounter the previous night and everything seemed okay. He sat up, and that dragged him back to reality. His chest and back hurt, he realised that his ear was still not there and he was half an antler down, but he thought about what Legosi said about how he would be loved not for what he looked like, but who he is and it made things a little bit better. Legosi was still asleep and he watched him for a moment, smiling.

“My wolf.”

Louis checked his phone and saw that if he didn’t leave soon, they would be late for class. They both still wanted to attend classes as they needed some kind of routine, but they would be excused from the acting part. He leaned over and shook his lover gently, who awoke with a little yawn too.

“Hey you. Class starts soon, you need to get up, love.”

He sat up in bed, smiling softly. He loved Louis’ body, scars or not. Thing is...how would the rest of the class respond to this?

“Alright, I’m getting up. You look amazing...”

He couldn’t help himself from staring at the deers nakedness, and it was safe to say that he enjoyed it maybe a little too much. Louis noticed and chuckled a bit.

“Down, boy. Not now, we have class.”

As much as he wanted to lie there with his boyfriend and enjoy his body, he knew that it wouldn’t be the best time. As it is, he reeked of canine...but he kinda liked it. In turn, Legosi carried Louis’ scent. The pair got dressed, not without watching each other intently. Louis truly felt safe with a carnivore...he never thought that it would happen in his lifetime.

The Professor was talking to Kai when Louis and Legosi walked in, and all heads turned to him. Some gasps were heard, others just froze in place. Every animal was staring at Louis, wanting to ask millions of questions.

“Ah, Louis. Legosi, welcome back. Why are you both late?”

“Professor! What the fuck, dude? You can’t ask them that!”

Louis stepped forwards and all attention went to him, again.

“Actually, yeah he can. He’s our teacher and we were late to class. He can ask whatever the fuck he likes. We were late because Legosi stayed at mine on personal request. I got back yesterday and as you can imagine, I found being alone a little more difficult than I initially thought.”

The Professor smiled and nodded at the deer, genuinely grateful for the backup.

“Of course, Louis. That’s completely fine. Thank you for being honest. Everybody else, stop staring at him.”

“No, it’s okay Professor. They’ll all end up asking anyway, so why don’t we have a fucking Q and A session, get everybody around in a damn sharing circle?”

“If that’s what you want to do, I won’t stop you. Looks like he wants to share with you all, so grab a chair.”

All the animals in the room picked up a chair and organised a row for themselves and Louis, Legosi’s and the Professor laid their chairs facing towards the class, a little bit like a panel at a convention.

“You’re all going to be extremely insensitive and ask me, or talk about me behind my back so let’s get the questions out of the way and then we can move on with our day. Who wants to go first, hm?”

Nobody jumped at the chance to ask first, they were all a little embarrassed after being called out as they knew it was the truth. Pina was the first to ask.

“How are you feeling, Louis? I don’t mean physically but like, within yourself.”

Now this took Louis by surprise, he would never have expected in a million years for Pina to ask something like that. He actually mentally applauded that from the dall sheep.

“I...I’m okay. I’m still a bit shaken up from the event, but I’m going to be okay.”

“I’m glad to hear it. Look, if you ever need to talk then I’ll give you my number in private, I don’t want anybody else knowing it.”

Louis nodded and smiled at him before taking out a cigarette, offering one to the Professor and Legosi. They both took one, knowing they it was prohibited not only within buildings, but within the school grounds. Everybody just watched them, thinking that they were either stupid or incredibly gutsy. The Bengal tiger spoke next.

“What...I mean...how did...um...what was the event?”

The deer went into the office and returned a few moments later, holding an ash tray for the three.

“I was kidnapped by a bad group of animals and they tried to kill me. As you can see, I don’t have three quarters of my ear, these scars on my face are permanent and most of my antler is gone. I’ll be alright though, I did Adler with a broken leg twice.”

“H-how...how did you get away?”

He flicked some ash into the tray, glancing at the gazelle next to him and he passed the tray after allowing Legosi to dispose of a bit of ash too.

“You know the story Professor, would you like to tell it?”

He leaned forwards and took his glasses off, rubbing them with his cigarette in his mouth.

“Now, everyone. I’m going to tell you the full story and I will spare no details. You’re going to hear some unpleasant things but I urge you to keep this at a level of utmost secrecy. If this story gets out, it will end very badly for all of you and us too. So, unless you want to get yourselves and your classmates killed, keep it between this class and NO ONE ELSE. Not your parents, not your lovers, not your best friends and not the authorities. Do I have your word that you will never speak a word of this to anybody outside of this class?”

Everybody spoke in unison, all quite terrified, really.

“I’m glad. Legosi here was the first to know, actually. He came to me asking for help and we managed to find Louis in a basement in the Back Alley Market. There was an altercation, Legosi received a bullet wound to the upper arm a-“

Louis threw himself to his feet with such intensity that the chair beneath him collapsed to the floor.

“WAIT WHAT THE FUCK?! WHEN?!”

“I-I’m sorry, Louis...I didn’t want you knowing about that.”

Legosi rolled up his sleeve and everything looked fine...but then he pulled away at a ruft of fur which came off easily, revealing a partially healed bullet hole, earning a gagging noise from somebody in the room. Louis himself felt sick, but he was extremely angry too.

“Why did you fucking hide this from me?!”

“I didn’t think that it would have helped your stress levels, especially after everything!”

“I’m unsure if you recall, but I didn’t fucking KNOW any of this! YOU GOT SHOT AND YOU FUCKING STABBED SOMEONE! HOW IS THIS NOT SOMETHING I SHOULD BE AWARE OF?! Actually, you know what? Fuck you, Legosi. Should’ve just left me there, I don’t know why I contacted you.“

He laughed sarcastically, but deep down, he was hurt knowing that his boyfriend hid this from him. Legosi was also feeling pretty damn broken. He didn’t say anything to protect Louis...The deer picked up the chair and took a long drag from his cigarette, crossing his leg over the other. He was shaking out of anger...to be honest, Louis was seething. Legosi was just hurt.

“Ahem. If any of you are impartial to gruesome details, then please step outside because you will not like this.”

Nobody moved at all, their eyes were fixed on Legosi’s arm. The wolf and the gazelle inhaled some more smoke and blew it back out.

“Legosi was shot and...he stabbed the first lion in the stomach multiple times. Next, we went into the basement and I fought another lion before ripping his throw out with my teeth, my face was painted with his blood. Then finally, one more pulled a gun on us when we managed to retrieve Louis, who had lost a lot of blood and was practically dying. I shot him in the arm and he tried going for Louis or Legosi and then I shot him in the back of the head. Yeah. I killed two lions and Legosi killed one, and we did it to save Louis. Now I must reiterate that if the authorities are contacted, this same group of lions will find out. They have some semblance of control over the police so if they get a report about this, myself, Legosi, Louis, you and all your classmates will be executed and they’ll probably take out your family for good measure. If you don’t believe me, then take the risk and see where it gets you because, and I say from personal experience, these guys will fuck your day up and tear you apart with their own claws. Anymore questions?”

Louis and Legosi stubbed out their cigarettes and the Professor looked around the room, his was still burning as he was a slower smoker than the other two, even though he’d been partaking in it the longest. Kai raised his hand, briefly looking at Els and Dom, who both looked like they were going to vomit knowing that they sat less than ten feet away from a murderer.

“Uh y-yeah...this is more of a different kinda question for Louis. Are you and Legosi a thing?”

Muffled whispers were heard and the Professor silenced them all before his eyes darted to the canine and then the cervid.

“No, we’re not. I don’t understand what gave you THAT impression. Let me know when I’d want to date a carnivore liar.”

Legosi had to force himself from crying. He lied to protect Louis’ feelings, especially after the breakdown in the bathroom. It’s truly amazing how everything can change in the blink of an eye...you begin to see everything so much differently. Last night, he lost his virginity. Less than 12 hours later, he just lost his boyfriend.

Pina raised his hand again and the Professor nodded, allowing him to answer.

“Legosi, if it’s not too much bother...how does it feel to...do...that...?”

He looked at Louis directly in the eyes and he gritted his fangs, showing them to the carnivore. Even the Professors eyes widened at this.

“It would have been okay if it was worth it. But Pina...I regret it whole fucking heartedly. You know what? I regret going there. I regret saving you, Louis. I got fucking shot while trying to save you. I KILLED A LION TO SAVE YOU...and for what? You’re an ungrateful asshole and I wish that I didn’t come to rescue you.”

Pina slowly lowered his hand as the wolf let out an aggressive growl at the herbivore next to him. Louis’ face was twitching with hostility and he knew that he wasn’t done. Legosi’s words didn’t hurt him, they just fuelled his anger.

“That’s fine, next time that somebody pulls a gun on you, I hope they hit you right in your dumb fucking dog skull.”

Legosi lost it after this. Within the space of three seconds, he was sat there on the chair and then Louis was on the floor, holding his face, some blood seeping through his fingers. He looked up at Legosi, who was staring at his fist, shaking a hell of a lot more than he originally was. He climbed to his feet and walked up close to the wolf.

“Hey hey, stop that now! Louis! Move the chair to the other side of me, right this instant!”

But he didn’t. As Legosi came to realise what he just did, Louis lifted his foot and kicked Legosi right in the snout with the sole, sending him toppling backwards in the chair. Obviously he knew that if he kicked with the front of his foot, he could end up killing Legosi right there and he didn’t want to do that. At least, not in front of witnesses. The Professor quickly climbed up and grabbed Louis, restraining him to the best of his ability. Bill of all animals ran forwards and assisted Legosi, only to be shoved away. He had blood pouring down his face, dripping onto the floor. The wolf himself had to be physically restrained by Bill and carried out of the room, kicking and screaming, wanting to really get at Louis. As the Professor fought to hold the deer in place, he only had one thing going through his mind...

‘WHAT THE FUCK JUST HAPPENED?’


	23. No Chapter Today

Today, I most likely won’t be uploading a chapter. Throwing out as many as I did so quickly burned me out, and I’m tired. It might change later, I don’t know but right now, I don’t plan on writing.

As always, thank you for reading and I hope you’re all well.

~NinesKnives


	24. Chapter Twenty One

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter will not be as big as others, I’m kinda suffering a little bit of writers block at the moment which is partially the reason why I didn’t upload anything.

“LOUIS! CALM DOWN! EVERYBODY ELSE OUT!”

As the Professor struggled to keep the deer from running out of the door and battering Legosi, everybody else quickly left the room, all of them shaken up from what they’d been told and what they saw just happen.

“Fucking let me go! I’m gonna fucking kill him!”

“No, you’re not! Calm the hell down!”

After a few moments, Louis began to stop fighting, realising that it wouldn’t get him anywhere and the Professor let him go, hoping that Louis wouldn’t bolt. He sat down on a chair and rubbed his face. The Professor sat down next to him and sighed.

“Fuck, that hurt. Shit...”

“Why did you start all of that?”

Louis gave him a dirty and quizzical glare.

“What do you mean? He’s the one that punched me!”

“No, Louis. While that’s true, you insulted him so very intensely and you seem to have just broken up with him. You’re mad that he didn’t tell you that he was almost killed but he didn’t tell you that because you almost died too. You were disgustingly wrong for that and I can’t really say that I blame him for hitting you, do you have any idea how much he’s hurting right now after you said everything that you did?”

Louis looked down at his hands, sudden guilt hitting him like a bus. Fuck...

“I don’t tolerate liars, Professor. Honesty, trust and respect are the three foundations to any relationship, romantic or not. Lose just one of them and everything else crumbles. It’s not the first time that he’s lied to me as you VERY well know.”

“I don’t think that you’re properly understanding the gravity of the situation that he was put in. Legosi was knocked out and his boyfriend was kidnapped. You were the only thing that he could think about and when he got shot, neither of us even realised until after we’d gotten you to the clinic and he didn’t sleep that night, nor until you actually came back yesterday.”

“How do you know that? He’s been staying at my apartment!”

The gazelle took off his glasses and wiped them with a cloth before putting them back on.

“I’ve been the one who’s been talking to him all night every night because he couldn’t sleep after what had happened to you. Plus he also got shot so he was thinking about that too. He never even got treated for that.”

Louis sat there quietly, listening to the Professor all the while thinking about what he did. He felt angry, sure...but he didn’t consider how Legosi felt either.

“I’m sorry, Professor.”

The gazelle stood up and started putting chairs away, stacking them neatly in the corner. He wasn’t happy, watching Louis attack Legosi and also vice versa but he knew that there was nothing he could do about it. Louis’ face still hurt, but not as much as it did a few minutes ago.

“Don’t apologise to me, I’m not the one you kicked in the face.”

Louis took the hint and stood up, leaving the room as well. He noted the trail of blood on the floor.

I did that...I hurt Legosi. He’s only been trying to help me and I fucking kicked him in the snout.

Bill was outside waiting for Louis, and he was pissed.

“Oi, deer. What the fuck do you think you’re playing at, huh?”

The Bengal tiger grabbed Louis’ collar and pinned him against the wall with a thud.

“It’s got nothing to do with you so get off me.”

“You don’t get it. I just took him to the fucking infirmary!”

“Oh yeah? Then either let me go or you’re going to end up there as well, your choice you fucking homophobe. I thought you hated fags so why are you touching one?”

Bill didn’t like being called out and snarled at the deer, leaning close and bearing his fangs. Louis could feel his warm breath, but he wasn’t afraid of the tiger.

“Oh, using your teeth? Look at you. I bet your idle threats make you feel like a big guy. We both know that you won’t do anything to me so let me go.”

Within the space of five seconds, a fist came out of nowhere and slammed in the wall inches away from Louis’ antler and then he found that there was a metal weapon pressed against the tiger’s throat, Louis had pulled a gun on him and he froze.

“Like I said. Let me go.”

Bill looked at him, still gripping his collar and presumably thinking about his options. With one more growl, he shoved Louis again and then let go.

“I’ll fucking kill you, next time.”

Louis tucked the gun away into his pocket and winked at the tiger, giving him a sarcastic smirk.

“Oh don’t worry, there won’t be a next time because I’ll blow your brains out before you get the chance to touch me.”

Louis shoved past him and made his way to the infirmary, now knowing the wolfs whereabouts. Truth be told, he felt incredibly horrible about hurting him, including putting him into the infirmary. This is going to take a lot of making up to do. He climbed a couple of sets of stairs and then found the infirmary, where he’d been a few times. Louis opened the door and walked in, his eyes scanning for the canine. He moved through the room a bit and then found him, who he believed hadn’t noticed him yet. He stood there still, trying to think about what to say.

“Fuck off, Louis.”

“How did you k-“

“I’m a canine, I could smell you and I don’t want to. Well, I can’t smell anything right now but I figured that you’d have been the only one who came here.

Legosi refused to look at him, but Louis at least saw the bandage. He also had one wrapped around his arm where he got shot, so that must mean that the bullet wound is being treated. His words sounded more nasal now, funnily enough. He sounded strange. The deer approached the bed, taking a couple of steps forward. Maybe if he got close enough...

“Legosi, I jus w-“

“I don’t want to hear your voice. Get away from me or I’ll make you shut up by fucking tearing your throat out.”

Now Louis felt more hurt than before. He just stared at the wolf, who simply growled at him.

“Legosi, I’m sorry. Just please list-“

“I SAID NO. LEAVE ME ALONE!”

A nurse heard the commotion and walked in, and the giraffe approached Louis.

“Excuse me Louis, I’m going to have to ask you to leave. Wait...do you need medical assistance?”

She eyed up his injuries and the mark on his face, a little curious but concerned about his wellbeing. The deer looked at her, and then back at Legosi who still refused to look at him. He shook his head and then turned around, and walked away.

“I’m terribly sorry about that, Legosi. Did you want Louis to stay here with you?”

“No, actually. I’m glad that you told him to leave, he means nothing to me.”

She nodded and then left, presumably to tend to another patient somewhere in the ward. Legosi wanted to think that he meant what he said, but he knew that it wasn’t true. He couldn’t believe that Louis had called off their relationship like that, in front of everybody and they didn’t even know. Did last night mean nothing...? Suddenly, he felt sick to his stomach and he just needed to sleep. He laid down and closed his eyes, his last thoughts of consciousness being those of Louis.


	25. Chapter Twenty Two

Sighing to himself, he knocked on the door to room 701. He needed help to speak with Legosi, but he didn’t know how or what to say. Maybe an apology would be a good start? He was a little surprised when Jack answered, but he was not happy to see the deer. The Labrador was smiling but the moment he saw Louis, the smile went away and his tail stopped swishing, as he always got excited at guests. Not this one.

“What do you want, you come back to attack Legosi even more?”

Louis looked at the floor, feeling extremely awkward and embarrassed about his actions.

“I...um...I uh...I-is Legosi here...?”

It wasn’t very often that Louis would struggle to get out a sentence, but he was being extremely meek and he found it difficult to even look at the wolfs best friend.

“No, he’s not, thankfully. You don’t really think that if he was, I’d allow you in? Do you have any what you’ve done to him?”

“I...I do, but not to the extent that you or he knows. I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have come here.”

“No, you shouldn’t have but you’re already here. Can I help you with anything?”

Jack spoke with a hint of annoyance, and certainly anger.

“I need to know how to make things right with him. Can you please help me? I know that you’re the last person I should ask because of what I did but I don’t know what to do. Please?”

Jack sighed and opened the door properly, allowing Louis in and he felt a sense of relief. The Labrador then closed the door again and sat down at the table.

“I’m not doing this for you, just so you know. I’m doing this for Legosi.”

“I understand. I need to make things right but I don’t know how.”

“Well, his birthday is coming up so maybe think about getting him something for that. Everybody forgets his birthday because he isn’t such a star like you...even if you’ve just crashed and fucking burned.”

Damn, Jack...I deserve that.

“I...uh, yeah...what kind of things do you think I should get him?”

“If you’re asking me, then you don’t know him enough to call him your boyfriend. Good thing you broke up with him.”

Ouch...that was hurtful.

“Get him something with bugs, he loves them. Not spiders though, they creep him out. There’s a new book that’s just come out that he’s interested in, but not had the chance to buy it yet. It’s called ‘Extinction’ (keep your eyes peeled because I’ve got plans) and it’s a zombie sort of thing...which surprises me because I didn’t know he was into that.”

Louis made a mental note of these things and decided that he would go and pick them up at the first chance he gets.

“Jack...when is his birthday? I don’t know if I’ll need to order stuff onli-“

“It’s tomorrow, April 9th.”

WHAT? SHIT!

“Oh fuck okay, okay uh...um...fuck...I need to go. I need to get these things. Thank you Jack, I really appreciate this!”

“Louis...you owe me.”

Jack spoke with quite a sinister tone and Louis turned back from putting his jacket back on to look at him.

“What do you want me to do?”

“Treat Legosi better than you already have, you fucking moron. Oh, and if you ever hurt him again like that, then I’m going to cut you in your sleep and you’ll wish that you died in the basement.”

The smile on his face as he said that...was just purely fucking creepy. Goddamn, Jack. Louis promptly left the room, thinking about his own birthday that happened less than two weeks ago...and he felt glad that he didn’t tell anyone.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The Professor sat at his desk in the drama hall office, reading over through the script to the play he wrote. Maybe Adler would be better to do. The cast and crew already know it, but he could make a couple of adjustments. Maybe...he could cast Louis as Adler, which is just a given as that’s a natural role for him but maybe Legosi could play the other main character...the gazelle really wanted to implement a LGBT section within the school to raise awareness to the subject...it was quite close to his heart.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Pina, why are we in my bathroom?”

Safe to say, both of them were pretty intoxicated at the time and Louis felt wavy. Pina climbed into the toilet, sitting on the cistern with his feet on the lid.

“I...I don’t know how to say this, Louis, and don’t laugh, but...I think I’ve got a crush on Bill.”

The deer looked at the dall sheep and chuckled to himself, a little louder than he thought, and his friend took offence.

“Hey, fuck you! I don’t think that this is funny!”

“N-no, that’s not what I’m laughing about...it’s just...he’s a big chonky guy and you’re a lot smaller, how would that even work?”

Pina looked up at him, curiously, and quite drunk.

“So...you don’t even care that I like guys?”

“Pffsht, why would I? I’ve got a crush on Legosi.”

Now it was Pina’s turn to laugh, and then they both were. Thankfully, they had their drinks in with them so they didn’t need to go out anytime soon, and they could have their own time together with no interruptions.

“So...why do you think you like Bill?”

“I dunno, dude. He’s the biggest asshole going and he’s extremely insensitive and homophobic...but I guess I like bad guys.”

“Yeah, I suppose so, and he’s a real fucking prick.”

They both drank some of their alcohol and Louis lit up two cigarettes for the pair, Pina taking it gratefully. His fur looks so soft...

“So, you and Legosi, hm? What’s that about?”

“I...uh...hm. I’m not really sure. I really like his fur, and his smile...and...he’s not a bad kisser either, he’s a really soft guy-“

“But he beat the living shit out of Bill last year and managed to capture Tems killer...you call that soft?”

“H-hah...he’s like a violent teddy bear.”

Pina chuckled again and drew in some smoke before drinking some more.

“You know, I think he’d be good for you. Look at us, two dudes talking about dudes we like. So, you fully gay, or...?”

“I don’t know, man. I really don’t know, but I know what I want and that’s him.”

Louis finished off his drink, smiling to himself.

“Yeah, I get you there. Come on, we better go back in before they think we’re blowing each other.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Legosi looked at his phone and saw that he had no messages from Louis, and he felt mixed about it. He wanted Louis to apologise for what he said, and even though Legosi knew that he wasn’t innocent, he didn’t start the fight. At the same time, he wanted nothing to do with the deer. It was his birthday tomorrow, but he didn’t feel like celebrating, he just wanted to lay in his bed and sleep the day away. Birthdays were always more difficult after his mom passed away and he just...didn’t want to do it. His arm was healing well and so was his snout, he could smell things clearly now. He felt lost.

“Mom...it’s my last year at school. I’ve got some problems going on and I don’t know what to do. I got shot, I fell in love and I had my first sexual experience and now it’s all crumbling down. I miss you, and I need you to help me. I know you can’t, but...it’s hard. It really sucks without you here. I’m twenty tomorrow and I really wish that you could have been here so I could hug you again and tell you that I love you...I hope that you’re not suffering anymore.”

Legosi sighed and wiped his eyes, looking up at the sky. Maybe he would call his grandfather tomorrow...maybe...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“What are we going to do about that deer?”

“I fucking want him here.”

“May I ask why, boss?”

“Free, I think that the Shishigumi needs a change of pace. Lions have dominated the Back Alley Market...at least this section anyway. I want him here because I want to pass ownership to him.”

“Why?”

“If you must know, the deer is actually the heir to the Horns Conglomerate. I did some research. Kid’s also one of the Branded, his name’s Shi, or Four. He’s also a future Beastar. Do you understand what that could do for us? We’d be able to get out of a shitty basement, and when his old man kicks the bucket, he’d offer to move us to the big building, which we can make our new HQ.”

“So, you don’t want him dead?”

“Not at all. I want him alive and I want him here as soon as possible. Don’t fucking kidnap him though, send someone to him and...actually...I’ll go to him. I want to go alone. Find me his location and I will be going there.”

“I don’t think that you should go alone, what if he gets mad for what we did to him?”

“Then I will simply explain that the three went rogue and got themselves killed, and that we do not condone their actions. As a sign of good faith, I will be writing him a cheque for compensation for his injuries. Now, go and get me the information about his whereabouts and then come back to me the moment you find it. Do not let me down, otherwise it will not end well for you.”

“Yes, boss. Right away.”


	26. Chapter Twenty Three

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> BIG THICK CHAPTER. ENJOY!!

Louis laid in bed, staring at the ceiling. Today’s Legosi’s’ birthday and he was unsure of how he’d be able to give the wolf his gifts. He’d already simply stayed in bed until about 4pm just thinking, he didn’t even text Legosi in case he had blocked Louis’ number, not that he’d be at fault for doing so. He looked over at the beetle in a plastic vivarium box on his nightstand and watched the little thing scuttle about. It didn’t bother Louis too much because he didn’t mind critters, but it wasn’t for him.

“Maybe I’m just being selfish. I’m caring about my own feelings, and today isn’t about me, it’s about him. What do I do, little bug?”

The beetle made a strange clicking noise in response, not even understand what the deer had said. Louis played along though.

“But what if he doesn’t even want to see me?”

Clicky click.

“Ugh, I know. Don’t criticise me, I can sell you again.”

Silence. Louis sighed and sat up, leaning closer to the box to study the beetle.

“I’m sorry, I won’t do that. Should I text him?”

Chirp. Louis picked up his phone and texted Legosi, hesitating for a moment before deciding what to type.

Lou: Happy birthday.

He waited for about half an hour and didn’t get a response. He sighed again and stood up, walking into the bathroom. He turned on the shower and when it was hot enough, he stepped under it. At first, he recoiled at the heat but he felt like he needed to feel the burning to drag him down to reality. The water sprayed his ear, or lack of, and it stung, causing him to let out a loud “Fuck!”. He took a few breaths before grabbing some shampoo, beginning to clean himself. The water felt nice, and he’d been neglecting his body recently. He had eaten maybe twice since the night before he was kidnapped, and it’s been a week and a half since then...and he’d only eaten maybe a stick of celery. He looked down at himself and noticed that he was quite considerably thinner than before, he just wasn’t in the mood. He stopped looking at himself because it made him feel sick and focussed on cleaning. Once he was all fresh and clean, he left the bathroom and sat down on his bed, towel wrapped around his waist. He picked up his phone and called a number, tapping his foot.

“Hello, Louis. Can I help you?”

“Uh, yeah. I need a favour. It’s short notice...like VERY short notice, but do you think you could do something for me?”

“Sure. Meet me in half an hour, usual place.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Legosi looked at the text from Louis once more, sighing. It had been three hours already. Should he say thanks, or just ignore him? He didn’t really want to see him because it might end up ruining his birthday...and he wasn’t feeling at his best anyway. He’d called his grandfather, who was very glad to hear from the wolf and he had sent him some money to do whatever he chooses to do with, and they also agreed that Legosi would visit him soon. It was a little awkward, but it was nice. Legosi missed his grandfather.

Leg: Thanks.

Jack sat down next to him, extremely giddy.

“You enjoying your birthday? Ooh, who’re you texting?”

“Louis messaged me to say happy birthday.”

“Oh, tell him to come here. It’s your birthday, I doubt that he’d try anything.”

Legosi hesitantly texted Louis, not really wanting him there. As he did, a ding was heard and then Mizuno opened the door.

“What do you want?”

“I...I just came by to drop these off.”

Louis was sporting his spiky punk leather jacket, boots, jeans and a My Chemical Romance shirt and he was holding a bag, but nobody could see into it. Jack knew what was in it and he stood up, going to the door.

“Give it to him yourself.”

Louis slowly walked in the room and came face to face with Legosi, who didn’t directly look at him. Louis held out the bag, his awkwardness and anxiety rising pretty quickly. I shouldn’t be here...

“...This is for you...happy birthday Legosi...”

The wolf took the bag and placed it next to him, briefly glancing at Louis.

“Thanks.”

Mizuno, Collott and Voss sensed the tension in the room and they went to the other side, talking to one another quietly. Louis stood there, unsure of what to do or say. Thankfully, Jack spoke instead.

“Legosi, open it, come on. He got it for you, so the least that you could do is have a look.”

Legosi sighed and pulled the bag onto the table, reaching into it. Firstly, he picked out the book and a small smile crept onto his face.

“You managed to get Extinction...I’ve been looking forward to reading this.”

Louis felt a little warmer and crouched down next to him, pushing the bag towards him.

“There’s something else. I’ll wait for you to open it and then I’ll go.”

“Hm.”

He reached in again and pulled out the small vivarium. He couldn’t see anything so he rotated it a little bit, trying to see what was inside. The moment he laid his eyes upon the beetle, his smile grew immensely larger and his tail started wagging quite quickly.

“A rhino beetle?! Oh, you’re such a little cutie! Hello, you little thing.”

Jack nudged him and the wolf looked at Louis, who was simply admiring Legosi’s smile, even if it wasn’t the best time to do so.

“I...er...thank you, Louis...that’s really thoughtful of you.”

“You’re welcome...I uh...yeah...happy birthday, Legosi.”

Louis stood up again and started to make a move for the door when he felt his arm being grabbed. He turned back to see that it was Legosi who stopped him, and he looked at the birthday dog quizzically.

“You know...you don’t have to leave if you don’t want to.”

“I don’t want to ruin your birthday with my presence.”

“Well, what’re you going to go and do?”

He thought for a moment, and sighed. To be honest, Legosi, I wanna jump off this fucking roof.

“I’ll just go back to mine and make myself some dinner, or something...”

He knew that was a lie because he didn’t want to eat anything. His stomach hurt, but he didn’t really care.

“Louis...it’s my birthday, and I’d like it if you stayed.”

Louis felt his heart jump, and he tried his best to contain a huge grin.

“Uh...thanks Legosi...well...if I’m staying then...do you want some pizza and alcohol? You don’t have to worry about me getting naked or something, I don’t stay for long.”

He said the second sentence quietly because he didn’t want anyone else to hear him. Jack had gone to join Voss, Mizuno and Collott to discuss a new manga, or something. Legosi nodded, smiling slightly.

“I just told you, Louis. It’s my birthday and I’d like you to stay.”

The cervid nodded and pulled out his phone, placing the same order as before, but with extra food and alcohol. Once it was done, Louis decided to make another call.

“Hey, Professor. It’s Legosi’s birthday today, and I was wondering if you wanted to say happy birthday to him?”

“Oh, well, um...I’m a little busy down in the drama hall. Think you could bring him down? I’ve got a gift for him.”

The Professor was on speakerphone and all of them heard, quietly debating to themselves. Everybody looked at Legosi, waiting for his answer.

“Uh, hey Professor. We’ll be down shortly and if you wanted to, you could hang with us for a bit?”

“I’d love to, but I’m quite busy, I’m afraid. Just come on down so I can give this to you.”

After he said that, the gazelle hung up and Legosi looked at Louis, then everyone else.

“Well, do you guys wanna come with me for a bit? I just have to collect something and then we’ll all come back here, or do whatever. Down to you guys.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The group went down into the drama hall, and Legosi was quite excited. So was Louis and Jack. They opened the door and the room was dark, so when everybody was in, the spot lights all turned on, cascading blue, red, green, white and a nice shade of yellow, but that wasn’t the biggest part. The room was filled with streamers and banners, which all screamed happy birthday. There were some tables laid out with bowls of crisps (chips, I’m not actually American so us Brits call them crisps because we’re weird), dips, some bottles of alcohol as well as what Louis had ordered because he paid for them to be taken to the hall, soda as well as other little party foodstuffs. There were also some other presents wrapped up on the table, waiting for Legosi to open them. There was a load of confetti on the floor as well as some balloons, and Pina, Bill, Kai, Els and the Professor stood there cheering for Legosi. The wolf felt extremely happy, excited and warm. His tail almost smacked Collott in the face, but he didn’t mind because everybody shared a collective feeling of joy.

“HAPPY BIRTHDAY LEGOSI!!!”

The canine could feel tears in his eyes, he couldn’t believe that this was done for him.

“Thank you everyone, this is...wow! I love you all!”

Everyone started clapping, aside from Bill. He went up to Legosi and hugged him.

“That’s gay. We love you too dude.”

Everybody went to doing their own thing after personally wishing Legosi a happy birthday, sharing their kindness with him. Louis stayed in the back, watching it all.

“Hello, Legosi. Glad you made it, happy birthday.”

The Professor hugged the canine and pressed a birthday card in his hand.

“What’s this?”

“Open it.”

All eyes were on the pair now, they must have known something that he didn’t. Well, Jack, Collott, Mizuno and Voss didn’t know but it’s an extra surprise for them, then. He opened the card and read it.

“Dear Legosi, I wish you a wonderful birthday. You are a fantastic student and it’s my personal pleasure to have met you. I hope that you’ve enjoyed your day, and now it’s time to enjoy your night. Please fold over.

Love, the Professor.”

Legosi felt like he was about to cry and he flipped the card over, revealing a cheque. He glanced at the Professor, who was smiling happily at him and Legosi dropped it with a small yelp.

“Oh! Professor, I can’t accept this!”

“What is it, Legosi?” Jack had shouted from the back.

“It’s...it’s a cheque for...o-one...one million yen...oh, Professor...I can’t.”

“Legosi. Take it, please. It’s your twentieth birthday and I want you to have this.”

He smiled softly at the wolf who folded it and put it in his pocket, giving the gazelle one more hug.

“This is incredible...all the decorations, the lights...how did you do this?”

“This was actually Louis’ idea, he wanted to do this for you and he paid for everything even though I said that I didn’t mind. I think that maybe you should go and say thank you to him.”

The wolf smiled at him before approaching Louis, rubbing his neck awkwardly.

“You...you didn’t need to do this for me. It’s wonderful, I love it. Thank you, Louis.”

The deer nodded and gave him a small smile.

“I’m glad that you like it.”

Legosi stayed silent for a moment, thinking. He then spun around and ran to the Professor, pulling him into the office.

“Professor, it was Louis’ birthday on the 29th of last month, but he never celebrated it. Can we please do something for him as well? I’d feel really bad otherwise, and even though we’ve had issues, nobody deserves to be alone on their birthday.”

The professor looked at him with admiration, and nodded, feeling a bit excited himself.

“Of course we can, this’ll now be a joint party for you both. I’m going to make the announcement now.”

“Hey, Louis. Have a beer, come on.”

Pina walked on over to him, holding a beer and a chip (changing the words in this to suit American lingo is an absolute nightmare. Funny, it’s set in Japan, but it’s American by a British writer. I think I’ve said that before so if I make mistakes, then please forgive me.), chewing on something else.

“Oh hey, Pina. Thank you...I hope that Legosi likes it.”

Bill was next to follow over and he had heard what Louis said.

“Even though you put him in the infirmary, I think that you’ve definitely gotten back into his good books. You did well to organise this, Louis.”

“Thanks, I wanted to do something nice for him after ev-“

“Everybody, I would like your attention once more. I have been informed that there’s somebody else in this room who recently had a birthday, and they didn’t celebrate it. So tonight, and strange as it may be, this party is now dedicated to Legosi AND Louis. Tonight, this is your birthday. Go wild, have no regrets! Happy birthday to the pair of you!”

Everybody erupted into cheers again, including Legosi. He was watching Louis, and genuinely smiling as he clapped. Some whistles were heard among the clapping and Louis went a little red in the face. He’d always been used to having the attention on him but this...this was different. He drank some of the beer in his hand and again, everybody went to do their own thing.

“Yo, Louis!”

Kai walked on over, drinking a beverage himself and he seemed happy.

“Hey Kai, what’s up?”

“I don’t know if anybody’s said anything to you about...your event, but I just wanna say that I’m glad that you’re okay and...the scars and the whole ear thing...you look badass as fuck, man! I definitely wouldn’t mess with you, that’s for sure.”

He laughed and so did Louis, the deer slowly feeling comfortable.

“I’d watch out for the Prof and Legosi, they’re the badasses here.”

“Yeah yeah okay, only because they’re now technically murderers.”

He said the final word with a bit of sarcasm, it didn’t bother Kai at all and he wasn’t afraid of them. He chuckled to himself and drank some more of his alcohol.

“Hey, do you have any cigarettes?”

Louis reached into his jacket, but only found his lighter and he sighed, zipping his jacket back up.

“Nah, sorry, only got my lighter.”

Kai pulled out a fresh packet of straights (yeah us Brits are weird, we call cigarettes both straights and fags, don’t sue me or my country) and tore off the thin plastic strip around the cardboard, opening it up. He pulled out two and gave one to Louis, putting the pack away.

“That’s fine, because I don’t have a lighter.”

They both lit their cigarettes and exhaled the smoke, breathing it out with a sense of satisfaction.

“These are real smooth, what brand are they?”

“Oh, they’re Riches, what’re the ones that you smoke?”

“I usually smoke Morrows. Since when did you start smoking, you know it’s not good for you right?”

Kai laughed, then breathed in some more smoke.

“Anything could kill us, these are the least of my worries.”

“Yeah, that’s fair enough. You know, you’re actually a really cool guy. I’m sorry that I was a dick to you before.”

“Oh dude, don’t stress! All water under the bridge, baby! I think...you should speak to Legosi though.” 

He pointed over to the wolf, who was chatting with Els and Voss. The Professor was just stood about watching, Jack and Collott was eating some food and Mizuno was just fixing himself another drink. Legosi nodded and walked on over to Legosi.

“Hey, can I talk to you real quick?”

“Oh, sure. I’ll be back in a few, don’t get too wasted!”

Louis led the canine into the office and they both sat down next to each other, keeping out of the Professors’ seat. Louis has decided what he wanted to say.

“Legosi...I want to properly apologise. I know that you had my best interests at heart, and that you were only looking after me. You saved my life, and you killed somebody for me. I was an asshole to you, especially when I broke up with you and then kicked you in the snout...how is your snout by the way?”

“O-oh, um...healed nicely. Louis, look, I shouldn’t have lied to you about my injury. I feel really bad about punching you, I was just-“

Without a second to waste, Louis leaned over and kissed Legosi on the lips. God, how he missed that feeling. The warmth and the softness...Legosi pulled back and looked at him, a little shocked.

“Louis...”

“I-um...shit...sorry.”

Legosi stood up and climbed onto Louis’ lap, wrapping his arms around him.

“Just shut up and kiss me again.”

The deer didn’t need to be told twice. He pulled Legosi closer and pressed their lips together again, the wolf letting the cervid explore his mouth with his tongue. It felt a little scratchy, like it always did but he never minded that. In fact, he liked that a lot. Legosi enjoyed how soft Louis’ was, and it’s safe to say that their kiss reignited something within both of them. Louis’ hands lowered down to the canines’ butt and he squeezed gently, slightly bucking his hips against Legosi, earning a delicate moan and then a quiet chuckle.

“Hey, not right now.”

“Oh, so it’s an option?”

Legosi went a little red and Louis stood up, holding onto Legosi and then he roughly laid him down on the desk, the wolfs legs wrapped around the deers waist. They looked at each other lustfully, and one of Louis’ hands started to wander down his rescuers chest, then his waist, down to his thigh and then back up, Legosi shuddering slightly. Then, a little firmer, he pressed down against Legosi’s crotch, licking his lips.

“Oh, it seems like you’re pretty...excited.”

Legosi blushed at how hard he was, and Louis would’ve lying if he wasn’t in the same predicament. Suddenly, the door opened.

“Hey guys, wha-oh, my bad!”

The door slammed again and the two horny animals looked at each other before breaking down into laughter at Bills’ intrusion and then embarrassment.

“Come on, we need to get back to the party, especially after that.”

Legosi unwrapped his legs and climbed to his feet, panting softly. They both...rearranged...themselves and they kissed each other again for a few moments.

“So, Legosi...do you accept my apology?”

The wolf kissed him again on the cheek, smiling.

“Of course. Do you accept mine?”

Louis grabbed Legosi’s squishy butt again and stroked his tail.

“Darling, you never did anything wrong. Now come on, my boyfriend?”

Legosi smiled softly and pressed his forehead against Louis’.

“Yes...my deer.”

They both went back in and everyone’s heads snapped round to look at them. Sensing what had happened, considering by the look on Bills’ face, Louis grabbed Legosi’s hand in front of everybody, turned him around and pulled the wolf down, lovingly and passionately kissing him on the lips.

“To answer your question from last week or whenever Kai...yeah. Me and Legosi are a thing. Now, we’re going to stay here with you all for a bit longer and then we are going to celebrate by ourselves, as it’s also our birthday. Now, let’s get fucking drunk!”

“WOOO!!”

Everybody started clapping and cheering again, even the tiger who just walked in on them. Maybe he’s not as bad as everybody thought.

A little while after, when everybody was starting to get considerably intoxicated, Bill went up to Legosi and Louis, who were conversing with Els and Pina.

“H-hey...I just wanna apologise for walking in on you both, I did knock but neither of you answered. Also, I’m really happy for you both. You two deserve to be happy, especially after everything that had happened. And...uh, I think that I’m bisexual.”

“Hey, that’s awesome! Look at you all, being gay and shit. Then there’s just me, and as you all know, I’m the most fabulous sheep in here. Aside from you, of course, Els. You’re always a darling.”

She chuckled a little bit at the compliment and Bill went a little red, although he felt calmer now.

“Is that why you were always saying homophobic things, because you were actually closeted but scared?”

The tiger nodded, feeling slightly ashamed but Louis and Legosi pulled him into a hug.

“It’s alright, don’t worry about it. We all say and do things that we don’t mean. You’re valid, and we’re proud of you.” 

A/N: Heyo! NinesKnives here, I’m just quickly interrupting to let anybody of you who are closeted, gay, bisexual, ace or anything at all, INCLUDING THOSE WHO ARE STRAIGHT...(I mean you’re reading a gay fanfic but hey that’s your choice, no judgement :3)...I just want to say that you are all valid within your feelings, emotion, sexuality and gender. You’re all so valid and I’m proud of you, and I love you all, even though I don’t know you personally. Stay strong and keep being happy.

Bill looked away, blushing a little bit.

“H-heh...thanks, guys...”

“I would like to make one more announcement of the night!”

Everybody looked at the Professor, who was clearly a little more than intoxicated but they listened nonetheless.

“You’ve all grown to be my family in this club, and I’ve never felt so welcome by a group so I want to tell you all a secret. Firstly, I’m Spanish, not Italian and secondly...”

The gazelle took off his glasses and looked around the room, seemingly surprisingly sober now that he was thinking. He looked at all of the faces, and then Louis and Legosi, then seeing them hand in hand and it gave him the confidence needed. He still felt nervous, but he also felt like it was time.

“My name is Sergio, BUUUT I still want you all to call me Professor. That stays in this room, alright?”

Everybody clapped for him and Louis cupped his hands over his mouth, shouting

“IT’S LOVELY TO MEET YOU, SERGIO!”

The gazelle went a little red, but he owned it. God, that felt good to get out. He trusted this group and if he could confess to murdering two members of a gang, then surely he could tell them his name. He really felt like he was part of a family, and it was something that he hadn’t felt in a long time. He climbed down off the chair and put his glasses back on, and everybody stopped cheering to go and show their support.

“Thank you for telling us, but for tonight only, we’re going to call you Sergio. It’s mine and Legosi’s birthday so...let us have this.”

Louis gave the gazelle a evil smirk, which was met with laughter.

“Of course, Louis. For tonight, we’re all fucking free!”

Nobody needed to be told twice. He pressed a button on his phone and then music was playing through the speakers, which all the animals enjoyed. They drank, danced, sung (which Louis and Pina were actually the most prominent at doing), and they had a great time. Then a certain song came on, by request. The Professor told everybody to clear the floor, and Louis pulled Legosi in. He put his hand on the wolfs waist and shoulder, and Legosi did the same. Then they started swaying and moving a little, and occasionally Louis would sing along, meaning the words to his lover.

“Cause I wanted you to know, that the world is ugly...but you’re beautiful to me...are you thinking of me now?”

Legosi smiled and kissed him softly, earning some “awws” from the audience.

“I’m always thinking of you, my deer. What’s this song called, by the way?”

Louis stepped a little, taking the lead in the slow dance.

“It’s called The World Is Ugly, by My Chemical Romance.”

“Well, I think it’s lovely.”

“I think that you...are beautiful to me...”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Louis basically kicked his apartment door open, pulling the wolf in as their hands rubbed over each other. He slammed the door behind them, not even paying attention. They weren’t able to keep their mouths apart for more than five seconds, their passion burning in their hearts...among other places. They moved into the bedroom and Louis instantly started undressing the wolf, who was undressing the deer at the same time. They really wanted to take in each others bodies, but they were too drunk on alcohol, love and lust. It took them only moments to have their clothes off, and Louis pushed Legosi onto his bed, rubbing his thighs.

“Say, do you want to continue our...talk...from the office?“

Legosi nodded frantically. He wanted Louis, and Louis wanted him. Louis reached into his drawer and pulled out a bottle of lubricant, squeezing some out onto his cock and then he massaged himself, lathering his member. He poured a little bit more into his hand and rubbed Legosi’s entrance, earning himself a pleasured moan.

“That feel good?”

“Mmh, yes it does...it’s a bit cold though...”

Louis leaned down and kissed him, letting wolf wrap his legs around his body. The deer placed one hand on his lovers chest and used the other to adjust his position down below, but then he stopped.

“Legosi...are you certain about this?”

The canine nodded in agreement, biting his lip. Please, Louis...I want you...the deer pressed his tip against Legosi’s tailhole and slowly pushed himself inside, moaning at the tightness.

“A-ah, Louis...”

“Are you okay?”

“Mmh, yeah...keep going...”

The deer didn’t need to be told a second time. Passion completely overwhelmed him and he pushed his cock into Legosi all the way, earning a few sharp gasps coming from the wolf on the bed.

“Oh...fuck, Legosi...”

Louis pulled his hand off the canines chest and lowered to the hard member that was pulsating, and he started stroking him. Legosi felt like he was on cloud nine, his mind racing yet only focussing in his lover, who was pounding into him while jerking him off. Louis leaned down and kissed the wolf’s neck and chest, while thrusting into him with a considerable speed and intensity. Legosi felt a burning pain, but he didn’t care too much. He just wanted Louis, and he was getting what he wanted. God, he loved the deer.

“A-ah...Louis...harder!~”

Smirking and pulling away, Louis started hammering his long, hard dick roughly and passionately, causing his mate to just about scream in pleasure.

“FUCKING HELL, YES! OH GOD...FUCK!~”

“Mmh, you feel so...fucking good...”

Legosi was moaning and gasping pretty damn loudly, the sound of Louis’ body hitting against Legosi’s being the only other audio in the room. Louis adored the feeling of his partner’s tightness around his member and that of his cock pulsating in his hand, and Legosi felt like he was going to explode.

“L-Louis...fuck, I’m getting close!”

“Mmh, me too baby, come for me...~”

The wolf’s breathing now became erratic, sharp and broken as he struggled to take in oxygen while moaning, or screaming, as much as he is and he started bucking his hips, pushing against Louis all the same, the intense feeling of pleasure slowly taking him over. He pulled Louis down with one hand, gripping the bedsheet so fucking tightly with his over and they kissed again, with a fair amount of pressure as he felt his insides getting destroyed by Louis. After a few moments, Legosi knew that he couldn’t contain himself anymore and Louis was starting to feel the same.

“A-ah, Louis...Lo-Louis...mmfh...F-FUCK, LOUIS!!!“

With an intensely loud moan, he spilled his seed all over his lovers hand, stomach and chest, the warm sensation seeping into his fur, his muscles contracting and Louis stopped rubbing his cock and grabbed Legosi’s legs, bucking his hips as he thrust into him as deep as he could, moaning as his liquid poured into his lover, the climax being the most intense one that he’s ever had in his life. Legosi adored the feeling of being filled, with his lovers cock pulsating inside of him, and knew that he wanted that again. After a few moments, they both managed to calm down and gather their bearings, panting very heavily.

“Oh, God...Louis...that...“

“Y-yeah...hah...you f-feel amazing...I’m gonna need to do this to you more often...”

They then shared quite a tender kiss, one not out of lust but love. Louis pulled out, with a little moan from Legosi and he took his lovers hand.

“I love you, Legosi.”

“I love you too, Louis.” 

It was at this moment that Legosi realised that there’s a problem with being bred like that, and his face went a little red.

“I-um...is it okay if I use your bathroom? I kinda...well...”

Louis understood perfectly and pressed his nose against the wolfs, smiling.

“Of course, dear. Be careful.”

With quite considerable difficulty, Legosi managed to stand up, even if he did need to lean against something for stability. Louis licked his finger clean from his partners own liquid, and it tasted better than before. While the canine was in the bathroom, Louis climbed into bed and pulled the sheets over himself and waited for Legosi to come back, but he would be waiting about fifteen minutes. Luckily, when he came back in, the deer was still awake and he gave his partner a lovely smile, sticking his tongue out.

“How’re you feeling there, you alright?”

“Y-yeah, better now.”

He climbed in bed next to the cervid and cuddled up to him, Louis putting his arm around Legosi.

“Did you enjoy that?”

“Yeah, I did. I think that maybe, we shouldn’t go so rough because I’m struggling here.”

The pair laughed quietly and Louis kissed the back of his neck, pressing his body against the canine.

“Of course...did you have a good birthday?”

“Y-yeah I did, you were there and it j-OH FUCK, I left the beetle in the hall!”

“Don’t worry, love, I’m sure that Sergio will take care of it.”

“I still can’t believe that he told us his name.”

“Me neither, but then again, I wasn’t expecting Bill to walk in on us, then outing us. But...I don’t mind because I get to be here with you.”

Legosi held Louis’ hand against his chest, the deer able to feel his heartbeat.

“Being here with you is the best end to my birthday that I could ever ask for...and it’s my birthday too, kind of...and this was the best birthday I could have ever hoped for. I was actually cared about, and I got to make love to you...I couldn’t ask for anything more.”

“I’m glad, my deer.”

Soon after, they fell asleep in each other’s arms, both feeling that they knew that they were going to be in this for the long haul, but they would be doing it together.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Meanwhile, Pina and Bill were just getting started on one another.~

https://discord.gg/Xxs5KSW


	27. Chapter Twenty Four

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gore and violence mention, also things get slightly sad.

Oh, fuck...my head hurts...how much did I drink last night? Louis could hear every single small noise amplified by a hundred and he felt like his brain was going through an internal earthquake. He closed his eyes, hoping that it would help the pain but it didn’t. He felt sick, but at the same time, he didn’t.

“You alright, deer? You look like you’re about to pass out.”

Louis shook his head and instantly regretting it, letting out a quiet “fuck” and a deep, long drawn out exhale.

“N-no...my head is killing me...”

Legosi, now being mindful, let out a low chuckle.

“Yeah, and my ass hurts too. Is there anything I can do for you?”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Father, I don’t feel well.”

Oguma looked down at Louis, taking his glasses off. The older buck folded over some paper and stood up before crouching down next to Louis in his office.

“Number Four, I don’t have time for this. I’m quite busy. I will fetch you some water but then you must go back to bed if you feel unwell.”

The young buck nodded and then screwed his face up in pain, holding his stomach.

“What is the matter?”

“M-my tummy hurts, father...it really hurts...”

“I see. Come with me, then.”

Oguma took young Louis by the hand and led him back to his room, all the while, the child kept making little pained noises. The older stag helped Louis into bed and covered him up with his blanket and gave him the water that was on the night stand. Louis sipped it a little with both hands like a child would and then sighed, passing the glass back.

“You need to rest, if you are unwell, Number Four. I will arrange for a doctor to come and see you.”

“D...d...daddy...?”

Oguma froze in place upon hearing that. All this time, Louis has called him father, but never that. It sparked something inside of him, maybe a paternal instinct. He turned around and sat down on the bed, his face seeming softly and Louis could swear that he wore a small smile.

“Yes, Louis?”

“Can you read me a story?”

Oguma nodded and patted Louis on the head, being mindful of his little stumpy antlers.

“Of course, my son.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“It’s going to sound weird, but I need you to read something to me.”

“What, like a story?”

Louis nodded slightly, trying to not move too much.

“Of course. I picked up Extinction, so I could read that for you if you like?”

(A/N: If anybody steals my work for Extinction, I’m gonna sue because it’s original content :3)

“Y-yes...please.”

Louis laid back down on the bed, closing his eyes. Legosi left and returned momentarily with the book and he laid down next to his lover.

“Alright, I’ll be a bit quiet.” 

He opened the book and flicked a couple of pages, clearing his throat quietly as to not disturb Louis.

“You just lie there and don’t worry about saying anything. Okay, Chapter One.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I opened my eyes once more to the sunny haze coming through the window, and I sat up yawning and having a little stretch. I looked around at my stuff, making sure that I haven’t been robbed during the night and I was grateful when I saw everything I owned. I yawned again and opened my backpack, taking out a water bottle, drinking some. Is it just me, or is the first mouthful of water in the morning just the best? Well, no time like the present. The military’s stationed about forty miles away from here, so unless I can find a car...I’m gonna need to walk. Thankfully, I had cleared out this home for supplies. You see, the world is in a bit of a fucked up situation. It started what, Just over a month ago? At first, there were isolated cases and we just assumed that some people just caught a new kind of influenza and we were told that it was contained by the CDC, but they were wrong. There were black helicopters appearing in the sky more and more often and the news broadcasts just showed things getting more violent as days went on. We saw reports of people attacking others in the street, maybe it was a biochemical terrorist attack sent from another country to cripple us. Only when other countries were reporting it too, including those who were considered targets of my country, we realised that something really fucked it was going on. Next, we’re being told to “stay inside, barricade all doors and windows, have no contact from anyone from outside. Stockpile medical supplies, ammunition, food, water and the sort. If anyone shows any signs of infection, then report them to the nearest quarantine zone.” Yeah. Like that did anything. You’d never be able to get to a quarantine zone because it was too dangerous outside, and we were being told to stay inside at the same time. Some stayed inside, some didn’t. I remember seeing my first one, my brother. He came into my apartment a couple of days after it started and he had a bite mark on his arm. He said to me “Gerard, I need help.” He told me what happened, and from what we had seen on the news...well...we were uninformed. He started getting sicker and although I treated his injury as best as I could, he didn’t make it. I wrapped him up, getting ready to bury him as we were instructed but then he started moving. I thought that he was okay, but that wasn’t the case. The light behind his eyes had completely faded, they almost seemed milky white. Blood was dripping down his chin and his skin had turned into this disgusting colour that I can’t even explain what it was. He came close to me, growling and snarling and I thought that he was okay. I really...I really thought that he was okay. He tried to attack me, like we had seen on the news and he wasn’t responding to me, he just seemed like he had one thing in mind, and that was killing me. I took my shovel and beat the living shit...or dead, rather...out of him and he just kept trying. He didn’t respond to getting hit, like he didn’t feel pain and that’s when it clicked in my mind. My brother is a fucking zombie. All the movies and video games and books...it came true. Thankfully, I’m not a complete dumbass like the ones in said movies, books and games and I knew what to do. I hit him in the head again and again, the thwacking sound slowly turning into one of squelching as I spattered his brains all over my living room carpet. Next thing, I broke down and cried. I sat there and cried and held his mashed and mangled...and his dead body for what seemed like hours. I just kept saying his name repeatedly, like I was in a trance. “Wheatley...Wheatley...Wheatley...” People say that your first kill is the worst, and they fucking got that right. That was my first kill, but he was the first one I truly saw too. How messed up is that? But anyways, the ones who went outside, the guys and girls who thought that they were all tough and could defend themselves, they were the first bunch that went. They were cocky and they got themselves killed, and now they’re the ones out there roaming the streets, trying to either tear apart completely or turn more of them into their undead army. Luckily, they don’t run. I’ve noticed that, when they’re chasing someone, or even me...they just kind of, shuffle along. Don’t get me wrong, you should never underestimate a slow zombie because you’ll get cocky and you’ll think that you won’t get caught, but because they’re slow...they’re quiet. Some are noisy fuckers, but some aren’t. I’ve seen it. I’ve seen people die because of their cockiness and their arrogance, and I don’t know if I’m losing my own humanity but I don’t really care about them. They got themselves killed because they didn’t think and they acted irrationally. Now, all they’re good for is either target practice or for an unpleasant death. About a week after it got bad, the generators went down. The town spent about eight hours in darkness, during the night, no less. Thankfully, the solar generators came on but they went out pretty quickly too. For what reason, I don’t know. I kinda imagined that solar would be the way to go, but...I don’t know. I tried to call my other family members and my partner but I couldn’t get through, the signal went down, and it wasn’t just the signal. A few days into the end of the world, I was scavenging for supplies and I saw this plane just fall out of the sky. No heavy jet engine noises, just a considerably loud whistling noise, one that’s hard to explain and it crashed, exploding instantly. I thought that, hey, people survive accidents like this so maybe there’s someone that needs help. There was no one. Just fucking flaming zombies that carried the most despicably disgusting odour, enough to make anybody vomit on the spot. I’m not a big shot, I know I’m not one of these designated survivors. I worked at a fucking restaurant as a waiter. I need to find other people, because that’s most likely going to be my biggest chance at survival, or the quickest way for me to get robbed and killed. Either way, it’s better than being eaten alive. I picked up my stuff and made my way out of the bedroom, down the stairs and out of the house, holding my hunting rifle that I found a couple of houses back. Owner was a gun nut. I know nothing about guns specifically, but I know a silenced hunting rifle and a silenced handgun when I see it. How goddamn convenient, finding silenced ranged weapons. Almost makes this apocalypse worth losing EVERYTHING over. Still, I’m surviving better than about 98% of my town right now and most likely the same percentage for the whole planet so I guess I’ve got that going for me. I walked out into the road, spotting a cell tower. Maybe I can get a good view of my surroundings from up there, and I might be able to see a survivor enclave.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Did you enjoy your story, Louis? How’s your tummy?”

“I feel a lot better now, thank you daddy. Do you think that the prince stayed with his princess forever after defeating the dragon?”

Oguma looked at the small buck and smiled, stroking his face softly.

“I hope so, son. I really hope so.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Hey deer, that’s that. How are you feeling?”

Louis felt warm and happy. He enjoyed the chapter, but he also thought about that memory he has with Oguma, one of the only good memories he can remember of his ‘father’.

“My head still hurts, but no way near as much. Thank you, love.”

Legosi set the book down and curled up to his boyfriend.

“Does that really work, huh? Just reading to you makes you feel better?”

“Yeah...I think it’s a psyche (A/N: mental) thing, and my...father, used to read to me whenever I got sick. Every single time I was unwell, he would read to me whether we were not on speaking terms, or if he was busy, or if it was about 3am. The moment he found out that I wasn’t well...we would dismiss the entire world and our arguments, just for a little while. He would take me to bed and he would sit with me and read me a story. Don’t get me wrong, the moment that I felt better, he wouldn’t start arguing with me again. He would always leave me to get some rest and he’d go back to doing whatever it was. Sometimes if we were fighting, I would come back to him after being rested. We would say nothing to each other, and just...hug. It was one of the only good things that we had going for us.”

Louis realised that he was crying because the pillow and his face felt wet and he wiped his eyes, flipping the pillow over.

“Well...if that’s what always happened, then maybe you should get some sleep. I’ll be right here, my deer.”

“Thank you, Legosi...”

The wolf smiled and kissed his forehead before letting Louis be the big spoon, pressing his back against the cervids’ chest.

“I love you, Louis.”

“I love you too, Legosi.”


	28. Personal

Personal matters have happened. No chapters today or tomorrow, I’m afraid. I’ll get back to uploading soon.


	29. Chapter Twenty Five

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heya! Sorry for the inactivity, hopefully I’ll be going back to daily updates, and I may look into doing multiple chapters a day, if I have the strength to do so. Thanks for being patient with me, and thank you for 1200+ hits! I cannot thank you all enough!

Legosi opened his eyes, an enticing aroma entering his nostrils. It smelled wonderful, but what was it? Sleepily, he climbed out of bed, not even getting dressed and he walked into the living room, scratching his neck fur. Through the wall gap, he could see a certain deer smiling to himself, humming along to some music and swaying his waist a tad, his little bushy tail wiggling. Legosi slowly moved into the kitchen, leaning against the doorway and he simply watched Louis. He wasn’t wearing anything either, so the wolf enjoyed the view of his lovers perky butt. Louis turned around and within half a second, his smile vanished and he almost dropped a pan and spatula with a yelp.

“A-ah! Fucking hell Legosi, you scared me half to death.”

He took a few deep breaths and the canine chuckled before going over to Louis, who put the spatula and pan down, kissing his carnivore boyfriend.

“Mm, sorry about that deer.”

Louis pulled away, his attention switching to the breakfast, although his face was a little red from seeing Legosi nude. He still loved it though.

“You keep up with those deer puns, and I’ll scare you fully to death.”

“Hah, sure. So, what’re you cooking?”

Louis folded over some eggs in the frying pan before adding some pepper, paprika and salt.

“Oh, just doing some eggs on toast for me, and an egg sandwich for you. Unless you want toast?”

Legosi’s eyes darted over to the bread and he instantly made his decision.

“Sandwiches will be fine, deer.”

He went over to the bread and applied some butter as the cervid waved the spatula in his general direction.

“I said watch it.”

He pretended to be serious, but it was too early for that and both of them laughed a little. After a few minutes, Louis had plated up both breakfasts and he carried them into the living room, placing them on the table. The pair sat down and smiled at each other before eating. Legosi chewed for a bit and then swallowed, clearly satisfied with it.

“Oh Lou, this is great. It tastes better than the ones in the cafeteria.”

Louis ate a little bit slower than his lover, but he nodded at the compliment. He took a few bites and cleared one of the two pieces he made, pushing the plate away. Legosi was right, it did taste really good but he just didn’t really want to eat. Meanwhile, his wolf had already eaten and was licking his lips to clean them. Louis slid the plate across the table.

“Hey, if you’re still hungry. I’m not, but I’ll grab something for myself soon.”

“If you’re sure...”

He took the plate and within half a minute, he had finished Louis’ breakfast too.”

“Hm. It tastes better on toast.”

Louis smiled and took both the plates into the kitchen. Legosi yawned and got up too, so he could help the chef but Louis simply put the plates in the dishwasher and closed it up.

“May as well wait until we make more dishes to clean, no point wasting water.”

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. The two looked at each other for a moment, wondering who they would be expecting. Next, and with a very loud thump, the door was kicked open and two lions entered. Louis pulled his handgun from behind the fruit bowl and aimed it at them. They seemed familiar...

“Who the fuck are you and why are you in my apartment?”

One of the lions stepped forward, unarmed and smiling.

“I will be reimbursing the door, so don’t worry about that. Now, I presume that your name is Louis?”

His finger stayed on the trigger, Legosi hiding behind the counter, crouched down.

“Who’s asking?”

“Agata, Free...lower your weapons. I wanted to come here alone, but they insisted, I’m afraid. Louis, my name isn’t important but I’d like to sit and talk with you, if that’s okay?”

Louis and Legosi were still completely naked but thankfully, they had their modesty hidden.

“It’s kind of a bad time. Step outside and come back in five minutes.”

“How do we trust you?” The main look asked quizzically, while his henchmen lowered their handguns and rifles.

“Me and my partner literally need to get dressed and then you may speak with me. As a sign of good faith, I will cook you a meal. Now please, I would like you to leave my apartment for five minutes.”

Wolf and deer dressed, eggs on toast cooked and lions fed, now was the time for business. Legosi sat next to Louis, the three suites carnivores across from them.

“That was excellent, Louis. I thank you. Now before we start...you.”

He pointed at Legosi, who looked back at him in confusion.

“You and a gazelle rescued Louis a few weeks ago, correct?”

“That...I...yes.”

The boss nodded and wiped his glasses.

“I see. I want to apologise to you both for what happened. I simply wanted to talk to you, then, Louis. I don’t understand why you were treated with such...indignity. The Shishigumi are not heartless, and I wish to pay for your medical bills.”

Louis didn’t know what to believe. He had questions and so did Legosi, but they decided that now maybe wouldn’t be the best time.

“I appreciate that, but the bills are covered.”

“Yes, Gouhin. We’re familiar with who he is, and we appreciate his work. He definitely fixed you up as best he could.”

He motioned to Louis’ ear and scars on his face, whereas his antler was just about fully grown back. The deer felt exposed and he kept his hand on his gun, which was resting on the table.

“Why are you here?”

“Firstly, Louis, your partner here and the gazelle murdered three of the Shishigumi. I had wanted to speak with you as business partners...but I don’t believe that we can do that.”

The deer gripped the handgun, even though everybody could see it. The lions identified to the pair as Free and Agata put their hands on their own weaponry. They didn’t exactly want to exchange bullets, but they were ready if it would come to that.

“Then what do you want?”

“I want you to join the Shishigumi. You, your work partner and the gazelle.”

Louis froze in place, shaking a little bit. Legosi on the other hand was just staring at him. There’s no way that they could expect him to actually go through with this? They tried killing him! Legosi thought back to the horrific acts that happened there...the smell, blood...Louis almost...

“Why do you want me to join?”

“You are the son of Oguma, sole heir to the Horns Conglomerate, correct?”

“Yes.”

“I see. Good. You see, I am dying. I need somebody to take over from me, and who better than the future Beastar, born and raised around the Back Alley Market, and a herbivore of all?”

His teammates flinched at the first few words, they didn’t like acknowledging that he is gong to die, and they certainly didn’t feel okay about letting a deer join, let alone take over. Legosi just stayed silent, his facial expression not changing at all. He didn’t know what to do or how to feel in this situation. Of course, neither did Louis but he was good at talking.

“If I accept this, what about my partner here and the gazelle? What happens to them?”

The main lion coughed and put his glasses back on, Free and Agata seeming to be a lot calmer now.

“Then they will join you. Obviously, not as high up in the ranks but once I pass, it’s down to you. There is a chance that they may not want to join at all, and that decision will be respected. However. Three of my team died. At least one of you will need to join before anything, if you want the others to survive.”

“You’re threatening me or them?”

“Yes.”

“Well, the honesty is flattering.” Louis looked at Legosi and then back to the lions. “I will consider it. I know how to contact you. I will be in touch.”

Nobody said anything more. The boss wrote out a cheque for the door and put it on the table before leaving with his two other lions. Louis leaned back, sighing and Legosi calmed down.

“We need to call the Professor, he needs to know.”

“But...these guys almost killed you!”

Louis snapped round to look at his lover, clearly more stressed out of the two.

“You think I don’t know that? You almost died too, and so did Sergio! But if I don’t join them and take over, then they’re going to kill you, the Professor or me...or even all of us! Call him, I need to think.”

Louis disappeared into the bathroom and shut the door behind himself, while Legosi made a phone call. What do I do? I could do this...but then I won’t be able to pursue being a Beastar...but do I want that? But then if I don’t keep that status, then they’ll perform a mutiny. Then there’s school, and the Professor and Legosi...we’ll all lose out if I join but if I don’t, then we’re potentially going to end up dead. Fuck...what the fuck do I do?

“Are you able to come and see myself and Louis like...right now? We’re going to need to talk to you.”


	30. Chapter Twenty Six

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everybody, I’m back now so I’ll be getting more chapters up for you lovely people! Thanks for being patient with me! ~NinesKnives

Wiping some sweat away, Sergio looked up at Louis, who had his arms crossed, almost seeming impatient. Legosi’s gaze was all over the room, he didn’t really know how to react to the previous situation.

“So they want us to take over, even after they kidnapped you, almost killed you and after me and Legosi killed three of them?”

His words betrayed disbelief, trying to make sense of it in his head. How the fuck was this going to even work? The deer sat down and sighed loudly, almost making an ‘ugh’ sound.

“That’s exactly what they want...but they would prefer having me considering my father. Professor, what would happen if I went through with this?”

“I...I really don’t know, Louis. I wish I could give you the answers to this, but I don’t know what could happen to you, or any of us for that matter.”

It’s safe to say that those words were quite disheartening to all three. They also all shared the same collective thought of ‘why can’t we just live a normal life?’. Legosi was basically finally living with Louis, even though it was never agreed upon. The Professor was able to teach a drama club, and Louis was away from his father. They all had what they wanted, but unfortunately, two of them are now murderers and the other is covered in scars, minus almost a whole ear.

“What if I do it?”

Both heads snapped round to the wolf in surprise.

“Legosi, you serious? They’ll eat you alive!”

“Unlike you though, deer, I’m a carnivore. They’ll be more inclined to listen to me over either of you.”

“But you killed one of them, and you don’t hold the financial status that my father does, that I’ll get when he kicks the bucket.”

Legosi looked back at his hands, making a quiet whiny noise. Louis was right, even as much as he didn’t want to be. The cervid was having a tough time deciding on what to do.

“Yeah...I killed two of them...but then again Louis is a carnivore...we’re really out of luck here.”

“I could always...nah...that’d be a bad idea...”

The Professor pushed up his glasses, trailing a finger through his beard for a moment.

“A bad idea is better than no idea at all, Louis. What is it?”

The deer took out his phone and placed it on the table, staring down at it. He really didn’t want to do this.

“I could call my father.”

Legosi stood up and went into the kitchen, opening the refrigerator.

“Anybody want anything?”

Sergio went in with him and took out two water bottles, one for him and one for Louis, letting Legosi decide for himself. He put the bottle down and sat on the chair next to Louis, the wolf still in the kitchen. He leaned in quietly.

“I think you should call him. I know you’d rather not, but I think you should.”

“...”

“Louis, hon? You okay?”

“...”

Truth be told, every time he was going to call his father, he’d feel really sick, deep in his stomach. He suspected that it was nerves, but he was never completely sure. After a few moments, Louis pressed on the screen once, rather aggressively and let it ring. It rung twice before an answer.

“Hello, Number Four?”

The Professor looked at Legosi and mouthed “Number Four?”, which was met with a shrug. Louis couldn’t recall whether he’d told Legosi about that already, but it wasn’t important.

“Hello, father. I apologise for the sudden phone call...I just don’t know where else to go from here.”

“It is fine. What do you need my help with?”

Louis took a deep breath, exhaling softly before speaking again.

“I was kidnapped by a group. They almost killed me but I was rescued, although I’m missing most of my ear but that’s okay. Today, the leader of this group came to my apartment and told me that I had to join them, otherwise it wouldn’t end well for me and my rescuers. They want me to take over when their leader dies, and I don’t know what to do.”

“I am glad that you came to me about this. It is nice to see you finally appreciating me. Do you recall what group they are?”

The deer nodded, although Oguma couldn’t see it, obviously. It was actually kind of nice, his dad actually helping him and not being a total prick.

“Y-yes, I do. They’re called the Shishigumi.”

There was a pause at the other end of the phone, and something smashing was faintly heard. Louis’ heart spiked

“Father? Father, you okay?”

“I am fine, Number Four. Did they say what will happen if you refuse?”

“They did, and chances are that we could end up dead. After all, we killed three of them...well, I didn’t...but...”

His voice trailed off, realising that he’s giving out more information than he should be.

“I see. I want you and your rescuers to come to the Horns Conglomerate tonight, we can try to get it sorted out. Either way, until this mess is fixed...you will be staying back here under my protection. The others too, if needed.”

Louis was a little surprised at the kindness that he was being shown. He’s being too nice...is he dying...?

“I-I understand, father. I will let you know when we are nearby.”

Click.

Louis locked his phone, the screen distracting him and he looked up at the wolf and gazelle, with a tingle of hope.

“It seems that he can help, maybe. I’m unsure whether he will react in a good way to you, Legosi. He’s not a huge fan of canines.”

Legosi nodded and drank some water, avoiding eye contact.

“Mm-yeah, that’s okay. I’ll file down my claws and I’ll keep my fangs hidden. Just remind me to stay polite if we eat there.”

“Louis, what am I going to do about the drama club, hm? If I’m under house arrest ordered by your father, not that I need this protection to begin with...what happens then?”

The deer thought for a moment while the Professor just watched him. What the hell was going to happen?

“I suppose you could give temporary ownership to somebody...like...Pina? He’s really good with a lot of things, and he carries a level of authority unmatched to anybody else in the group.”

Legosi thought about Els, but maybe after what happened to Tem, it would become too much stress for her. Pina did seem like the better option. The Professor thought to himself for a moment, mentally weighing up each and every classmate by their abilities to perform, direct, manage time and resources and maintain good leadership.

“Alright...Pina it is. I’ll sort that later on. Louis...can you tell us what to expect with your father?”

Thinking, the cervid nodded. He took a cigarette and lit it, blowing some smoke away from the other two. Not that it mattered, the room would fill up pretty soon anyway. The pair lit their own and soon, the room was pretty filled with smoke. He wondered if he’d see Leo there.

“Well, he’s a cervine, just like me. He’s old fashioned...he hates canines like I said, I suppose...he likes to...I...I think he...he wears a suit, and he smokes and drinks...and he, uh...um...I don’t think that I can actually help you there. I don’t know about him.”

“Well that’s alright, we’ll have the chance to learn for ourselves.”

For being the most likely one to get executed the moment he goes near the property, Legosi was really calm...some would even say excited. Why he felt that way, neither Louis or the Professor could figure it out. The wolf’s face didn’t show it, but his tail was wagging quite a bit.

“You like meeting new people, don’t you?”

“K-kinda...especially when it’s the animal that raised you, Louis.”

The deer was taken back by the sentence, a small smile creeping onto his face.

“Well, I suppose we better get ready for later. Don’t tell anybody where you will be staying, because if my father doesn’t, I’ll kill you myself. I don’t want visitors and my father will agree with me on that...although he doesn’t do that much.”

Louis looked terrifying whenever he wanted to, but Legosi still felt that he looked really fucking adorable too.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

(A/N: Hey everybody, NinesKnives here! Sorry for not uploading anything in a while, my personal life just got in the way of my writing schedule and to be honest, I think I needed a break from writing. Not just a day or so, but like...what, a week or something? I burnt myself out so I had to deal with life as well as taking time to rest and relax, but I think I’ll be okay now. Hope you’ve all been doing well, and thank you for reading IOI, you wonderful people!)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

They lay there panting, their fur and wool drenched in sweat. A small chuckle was heard and then a soft voice.

“You enjoy yourself there sweetie?”

Bill wiped his face, regaining his breath, but he cringed at the affectionate word.

“I-I’m not your boyfriend, you know.”

It was safe to say that his face was pretty red, even after their activity. Pina sighed rubbed a couple of fingers through the tigers fur.

“Okay then...did you enjoy yourself, BILL?”

“Yeah I did...I didn’t hurt you, did I?”

Pina leaned into close to Bill, placing his head on the larger animals chest, being mindful of his horns. Bill didn’t protest, and he wrapped an arm around the dall sheep.

“Look at you, giving me aftercare like this. And yet you say that you’re not my boyfriend.”

“W-well, this is all really new to me and I don’t know if I want a relationship.”

He seemed a little embarrassed...at least, that’s what the tone in his voice screamed.

“Well, I’ll help you through it, one step at a time, y’know. And if being fuck buddies means that it helps, then I’m all down for it baby.”

They lay there quietly for a few minutes, just simply enjoying one another’s company when Pina climbed on top of Bill, straddling him. The tiger would have been lying if he said that the sight of the nude sheep on top of him didn’t appeal to him and he put his hands on the waist of the wollen animal.

“You wanna go again...sweetie?”

“Ngh...fuck it, why not?”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

(If you’re going to have fuck buddies then please be careful ;) wouldn’t want any of you all to get hurt. Also I think I’ll add notes in like this during chapters because it’s a nice way for me to be able to have fun with you all through IOI. If you don’t wanna read then, then just scroll past. You won’t hurt my feelings, I won’t even know.)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hanging up, Louis put his phone back into his jacket pocket. He didn’t care if his father saw him sporting his punk clothes, it wouldn’t really matter much. Then again, neither did the misty rain.

“Alright, they’ll open the door in a minute. You both, please behave and don’t say anything that you don’t need to. My father adores the ability to hold things over me.”

The Professor nodded, pushing his glasses up onto his face again after wiping them for the eighth time and Legosi simply stood there, a little anxious. Momentarily, the door clicked and creaked open, revealing a familiar face, who was quite happy to see Louis.

“Louis, you’re here! I wasn’t made aware that you would be arriving, and you’ve brought gue-oh my, what happened to you?!”

Legosi thought that for a panda, he’s quite short. He looked...young.

The deer rubbed the back of his head and chuckled quietly.

“It’s a long story...but it’s good to see you again Leo. Tell you what, come to my room later on and I’ll tell you. That’s if father doesn’t let you sit with us.”

“Alright, of course. Come on in!”

The panda stepped aside and allowed the three to take their shoes off, before taking their jackets and folding them over his arm. He didn’t mind the fact that they were a bit wet. After a few moments, they started walking towards the dining hall. Legosi was stunned, taking in the new environment.

“It’s so big and clean.”

The comment earned him a laugh from the panda now identified to him as Leo.

“Why, thank you. Here at the Horns, we pride ourselves on cleanliness. Would you believe that it only takes us an hour to clean the whole building?”

“What?! No way.”

“Mmhm. I didn’t think so, because it takes a lot longer than that. Just don’t tell anybody I said that.”

The panda sure was happy, now that Louis was joke again. Truth be told, the young buck was his only friend. After a few minutes, they were all seated, Oguma just coming into the dining hall as well.

“Good evening, Number Four. I see that you brought your...friends.”

“Yes, I did. You told me to.”

Oguma sat down, not even paying any attention to his son.

“Is that you, Professor?”

Both gazelle and older deer looked at each other, while the other two watched on in surprise.

“Been a little while. How have you been, Oguma?”

“Oh, I’ve been okay. A tad unwell but it should be fine. How are you, what are you up to these days?”

“I teach at Cherryton, the drama club no less.”

Louis decided that now would be a good time to speak up.

“You both know each other? How?”

The Professor took off his glasses and placed them on the table in front of him, smiling.

“Shall I tell him, or would you like to?”

Oguma made a little motion with his hand, indicating for Sergio to talk.

“Well, Louis. Your father here helped me get my teaching degree. I was kicked out of my parents home, and Oguma took me in. Of course, we were at a different building to this, but I was not expecting you to be his son. Small world.”

The tension in the room was a little bit eased now, thankfully to this unexpected reunion and Oguma looked at Legosi, almost quizzically.

“And you are?”

“M-my name is Legosi, sir. I’m in the same drama club at school.”

“Okay. Well, I understand that you all have some...issues going on so you three will be staying here until further notice. I have notified Principal Gon, and he stated that it is okay for you to be here. Somebody else will be taking over from the drama club. We will discuss other details later but...”

His eyes went back to the wolf again, slanted. Did he have an issue with me?, Legosi thought.

“...for now, I believe that dinner is ready.”

He pressed a button and mere seconds later, Leo, followed by two bucks and a brown bear, came into the room holding metal trays that were placed in front of the four. They didn’t seem fazed at all, knowing that there was an unknown carnivore in the same room but Legosi felt a little nervous. They lifted the tops of the trays, revealing their dinner. Louis has celery soup, as per. Oguma had the same, the Professor was given a hearty salad with some warm sauce to be poured over it and Legosi was given...wait...what...? He felt his stomach do a backflip, the moment the aroma hit his nose.

“Is everything okay, Legosi?”

“I-I...um...I’m sorry sir, but I don’t eat meat.”

He felt extremely sick, just knowing that part of an animal was right in front of him...dead and...cooked...

“I see. My apologies, I assumed incorrectly. Leo.”

The panda arrived again, lifting the tray and replacing it with another very swiftly and quietly before disappearing. Thankfully, Legosi could stomach this meal, he was given celery soup too.

“I-I...thank you sir.”

Without another word, everybody started to eat and the two visitors were surprised at how good it tasted, but they chose not to break the silence. It seemed awkward for them...but they had no idea what was going through Louis’ head.

“It seems that you’ve sustained a few injuries.”

“Yes.”

“Shall I call for a doctor?”

“No.”

“No, what?”

Louis sighed and took another mouthful of soup. He did really enjoy it, but he would never give Oguma the satisfaction.

“No...father. Thank you.”

There it was again, tension so thick that it could withstand a hypothermic nuclear impact. Of course, Legosi was the first to finish eating, but he made certain that he would eat politely, even more so now that he was having dinner with his boyfriend’s father. Maybe it would be good to stay quiet about that, for now. Sergio finished next, then Oguma and Louis. The table was cleared and the four adults were given a glass of stiff whiskey.

“So, tell me. I want the full story between you and the Shishigumi.”

Louis downed his drink, grabbed Legosi’s and drank that too as he knew that the wolf wasn’t a whiskey drinker.

“Alright.”


	31. Chapter Twenty Seven

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Over 1700 hits, that’s amazing! Thank you all so much for reading!
> 
> Discord server: https://discord.gg/Xxs5KSW

Sighing, the older cervid set down his own pair of glasses and looked at the two guests.

“It sounds like that you all have had a very interesting time. I’m amazed at how all of this had happened since school started again, which was only about two months ago, if that. Of course, happy birthday to you and Number Four, by the way. Sergio, Legosi. Thank you for protecting Number Four and for taking good care of him. It seems that if he trusts you to the extent of committing murder to keep him alive, then he has chosen his friends wisely.”

“Thank you sir.”

Legosi smiled at him, but one wasn’t returned. That’s cold.

“Unfortunately, due to the amount of staff I have here, I do not have enough bedrooms to cater to the three of you. One of you will have to share, so discuss that among yourselves when the time comes.”

They all knew how it was going to be arranged anyway, obviously Legosi and Louis would be together. The Professor knew that, and he didn’t care.

“Now, when it comes to the Shishigumi, leave that with me. I know the boss’ son, so I will be able to make connection through him. If you will excuse me, I have some business to attend to. If you need anything, I’m sure that Number Four will be happy to show you around.”

Oguma grabbed his glasses and stood up, but a voice stopped him.

“Why do you always call me Number Four?”

Without any hesitation, the elder buck replied as he left the room.

“That’s your name. You will always be Number Four. Good night.”

Once the door closed, Louis stood up and poured himself another whiskey, now being on his sixth glass.

“Always with the fuckin’ number...he didn’t stick around long. Say, Professor...how come you never said that you knew HIM?”

The gazelle sipped his whiskey, placing the glass back onto the coaster, exhaling a little.

“I didn’t know that Oguma was your father, all things considered, it was nice to see him again.”

“Tch, nice...that’s one word for it.”

It’s bad enough that I have to come back here, but now I’ve got to show them around and let them see where I stay outside of school? Fucking brilliant.

“Hey, love. Come and sit back down.”

The wolf spoke quietly on the second word, he didn’t want anybody to hear and then tell Oguma. Louis downed his drink and poured himself another, almost slamming the bottle down onto the dark wooden trolley.

“Nah, come on. I’ll show you around.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Oguma. It’s good to hear from you.”

“It seems that your kidnap mission went a little awry, wouldn’t you say?”

“What? Who told you about that?”

“I have my methods of finding out information, but if you must know one thing, my son didn’t tell me. Why do you want him to join you?”

“He’s a herbivore, and let’s face it. You don’t have much longer left, so we want a fresh face...especially one with his...standing.”

“You mean his inheritance.”

“You don’t beat about the bush, do you?”

(“Beat about the bush” means to...like...in the phrase above, it means to get straight to the point, no small talk or any sense of filter.)

“You almost murdered the sole heir, who I spent good money on and raised as if he was my own.”

“Yeah but is he dead though? No, he’s not. You seem to forget our little deal. We let you operate the Conglomerate within Shishigumi territory, we provide you immunity and protection from any other clan, and if I quote, you will let us have what we need “when the time comes.” Now, the time has come and we need the kid. I’ll let you think about it. Have a good night.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Louis opened up a door and stepped inside, Legosi following him. He went over to his bed and threw himself down with a loud sigh, pulling his phone out. Legosi stood in the middle of the room, looking at his surroundings. The walls were littered with band posters, primarily My Chemical Romance. The walls were painted blood red and one window revealed the moonlight, the sunset slowly disappearing into the darkness. It was a decently big room, but there was only a wardrobe, a bed and a bedside table with an adjoined bookcase, not that it was large. There were many books in it, but they didn’t look like they’d been read in a while. Louis reached over and plugged his phone into a stereo before playing some music, which was his favourite band, evident by the posters.

“You really like those guys, don’t you?”

Legosi sat down on the bed and Louis pulled up one of his legs a little, being mindful of the brand on his foot.

“Too damn right. I have a signed picture of the lead singer, and I’ve got one of their albums hand signed by the band from years ago.”

(That’s a total flex on you emos by the way, because I’ve got that in real life and those two items are my pride and joy.)

“Oh, nice. Your, uh, your dad seems nice.”

Louis lit two cigarettes and passed one to Legosi, before breathing in some smoke.

“He’s not my dad.”

As he exhaled, he spoke and it made his words sound strange. The wolf did the same.

“I thought he was?”

Louis sat up and grabbed an ash tray from the bedside table, flicking some ash into it before placing it on the bed.

“No, he’s not. I’m his property.”

As much as Legosi wanted to pry for more information, he thought he would just be quiet.

“You see, Legosi...I was raised in the Back Alley Market to be eaten. I was brought up and put on display for buyers to, well, buy me and consume me. Oguma bought me and raised me, but he’s always held it over me.”

The deer took off his sock and revealed the number four on his foot, sending shivers down Legosi’s spine through to his tail.

“Jeez, Lou. I’m sorry.”

Legosi was at a complete loss for words, but Louis brushed it off like it meant nothing.

“Oh it’s fine. Technically, my name is Shi, which is four, but I preferred Louis. Oguma refuses to call me that.”

The pair both smoked their cigarettes in silence, the music taking over noise priority. Legosi started to enjoy it, his tail thumping along to the beat.

“This song’s intense, what’s it called?”

“The Ghost Of You, it’s one of my favourites. But if you think that this is intense, wait until you hear this.”

Louis fiddled with his phone and then a heavier, more aggressive song came on.

“This one’s called Thank You For The Venom. I love this track.”

The pair just relaxed, ironically, to the violent music. Legosi thought that he was starting to get into My Chemical Romance (and I can’t really blame him for that, they’re great).

“I wonder how the Professor is doing.”

Louis laid down again, closing his eyes, almost seeming genuinely calm.

“I’m sure he’s fine, Legosi. I just want to know how he really knows Oguma. That man isn’t kind, surely he wants something in return.”

“What if he asks the Professor to take over from the Shishigumi instead of you?”

Legosi laid down next to his lover, taking his hand.

“I’m not sure, but he’d be welcome to it. Say, Legosi, how was the sex?”

The wolf was surprised at the sudden question, especially during this conversation.

“I-uh...it was good. Painful, but it felt really nice. I know you didn’t mean to hurt me, so that’s okay. I think next time, we should be more sober.”

Louis chuckled and sat up again, opening his bedside drawer.

“Sober? What a disgusting way to live.”

He pulled out a bottle of rum and twisted the cap, then flicked it off. The way that he executed that action was just about flawless and he took a large mouthful, before exhaling deeply.

“Oh, that’s nice.”

He passed the bottle to Legosi, who hesitantly took it. The moment the liquid tasted his tongue, his mind entered two states. The first one was of enjoyment, as he quite liked the taste. The second state kicked in about two seconds later, when he swallowed it and Legosi almost coughed up his lungs. Louis laughed and took the bottle again, drinking some more.

“You’ll get used to it, don’t worry.”

Legosi wiped his mouth, sighing with the smell of ethanol on his breath.

“Lou, do you have a drinking problem?”

The deer looked at him like he’d just asked to take Louis’ intestines and bungee jump with them.

“What? No! Seriously? I have a FEW drinks and I’ve got an issue?”

“N-no, Louis...you’ve had about ten today and it has all been neat spirits.”

“So what? I’m not allowed to drink alcohol that I paid for? And to be honest, would you blame me if I did have an issue with it?”

Sensing hostility, Legosi tried to calm Louis down. In the deer’s defence, he had spaced out the drinks and he wasn’t consuming a lot in one go.

“Well I don’t know, I don’t want you gett-“

“What, getting hurt? Yeah, okay. Like that hasn’t happened to me my whole fucking life.”

He stood up and surprisingly soberly, walked over to the window and drank some more out of the bottle before throwing it out of the window as far as he could, a faint smashing noise echoing through the night. Louis went back to the bed and pulled his shirt off, then his jeans and dumped them on his side.

“There. Now you’ve got nothing to worry about. Happy now?”

There was a sense of aggression in his voice so Legosi didn’t respond. Louis got into bed and faced the window, not the wolf. He didn’t like other animals judging him for his actions like that, especially in his own bedroom. After everything that had happened, he thought that he was at least allowed one night where he didn’t have to be on fucking parade, he could just be himself and relax with his own methods. The deer turned off the music and shut his phone off.

“Louis? I’m sorry, I didn’t-“

“Didn’t mean to criticise me for doing what I want in my bedroom? Fuck off, Legosi.”

Louis maybe wasn’t as sober as he thought, and he must have known that. Right? The wolf however, felt a deep pain in his stomach at hearing his boyfriends words.

“W-where to?”

“I don’t know. Go find the Professor or something, I’m sure you’d love to go rubbing your dicks together again.”

“What? Louis, that’s uncalled for!”

“Yeah? Wanna know what else is uncalled for? My parents abandoning me, getting raised as fucking food, treated like shit my whole life, being forced to live up to expectations, losing my goddamn ear and getting criticised by my ‘boyfriend my for drinking to fucking cope with it all! Get the fuck out!”

The deer pressed his face into the pillow, just wanting to be left alone. Legosi, already still having all of his belongings on him, left the room, unsure of where to go. In the hallway, a female dall sheep came up to the wolf.

“Good evening, is there any way I can help you?”

Legosi looked down at her and frowned.

“I’m trying to find the guest room with the gazelle, his name is Sergio. Do you know where that is?”

A smile spread across her face and she seemed a lot happier than a few seconds ago.

“Sergio‘s here? Oh my, I know which room he would be in. If you would like to follow me?”

The young sheep led Legosi to a room, only a few doors down and she knocked on it. A couple of moments later, the door opened and the gazelle stood there, glasses in hand.

“Good evening Legosi, how can I help you?”

“Louis kicked me out of his bedroom. Is it okay if I come in here with you?”

He wasn’t going to lie, he felt ashamed and upset. He’d only been here for a few hours and they already had an argument. He didn’t feel like he was the one completely at fault though.

“Of course you can, come on in. Darla, good to see you again my dear.”

The Professor winked at the sheep now known as Darla and her face went very red before she scurried off. Legosi stepped inside and the older animal went over to the bed and laid down, the wolf doing the same momentarily after.

“So, what happened between you and Louis?”

Legosi sighed, rubbing his face.

“Ugh. I don’t know, he got pissed at me because I asked him if he had an issue with drinking. He literally opened a bottle of rum and started drinking from that, even after all that whiskey earlier. Then he told me to fuck off after he threw the bottle out of the window, so I came here. Is it okay if I sleep in here?”

The Professor put his glasses down onto the bedside table and nodded.

“Sure, if you don’t mind sharing a bed? I’ll keep to my side, don’t worry.”

He spoke with clear distinction, and he certainly didn’t want to cause more issues between the pair. Legosi nodded and they both got ready for bed. The Professor was already in some pyjamas that Oguma had given to him and the canine simply stripped to his underwear before climbing under the covers. Sergio was asleep pretty quickly, but for Legosi...it was quite a restless night.


	32. Chapter Twenty Eight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everybody! I’m sorry for the late upload, I’ve been busy with birthdays and I’m staying with my partner for a couple of weeks. I’ve also got a job! Anyways, I’ll let you read now. Don’t forget to join my Discord server! https://discord.gg/Xxs5KSW

With a decently large stretch and a noisy yawn, the young buck opened his eyes and sat up. His head hurt, but not as much as he expected it to, which was good. He glanced at the window and saw that it was raining. He felt to his side and his heart dropped a little when he realised that his wolf wasn’t there, and it dropped even more when he realised that he was at the Horns Conglomerate, instead of his own house...well, home in school, kind of. It was just easier to call it his home. Louis thought for a moment where Legosi could be, but then he remembered their dispute the previous night. If he wasn’t lying on the floor outside the door waiting for Louis, then he would be in with the Professor. He looked outside at the dark clouds, thankful that he was inside during this weather, watching the rain batter the window, trees swaying. Must be some storm, he thought. The deer climbed out of bed and went into the bathroom for a shower and to relieve himself, coming out nice and clean. He took off the towel and draped it over the heating rack before approaching his wardrobe.

“Why was Legosi in my room last night?”

A loud yelp was heard out of surprise and Louis’ hands moved very quickly to cover himself as he grabbed a shirt to hold over his modesty.

“What the fuck are you doing in here?! I’m completely fucking naked!”

The Professor nodded and removed his glasses.

“Yeah, I can see that. We’re just guys here, so it doesn’t even matter. Anyways, would you care to explain?”

He went to light a cigarette but Louis snatched the lighter with his free hand.

“I’ll explain when you get the fuck out and let me change!”

Deliberately to be a dick, the Professor simply covered his eyes with his hands. Louis, knowing that he wasn’t going to win, pulled the black torn -designed to look damaged, Louis doesn’t wear anything unless it applies to his punk emo aesthetic- shirt over himself and then put on some underwear and a pair of skinny jeans.

“You can open your eyes now.”

The Professor removed his hands from his eyes and Louis gave him back his lighter.

“Thanks. I didn’t look or anything.”

“I know. I was watching you in the mirror inside the wardrobe.”

The gazelle chuckled and lit his cigarette, the smoke instantly filling the room with a soft haze.

“You we’re watching me while you were naked? You weirdo.”

His tone indicated that he wasn’t being serious, and to make sure that he wanted to not fall out with Louis, he offered a cigarette. The cervid took it and sat down on his bed.

“I guess I was just a bit drunk and got pissed off at him. I know he was only trying to take care of me, and I shouldn’t haven’t snapped at him like that.”

Louis lit up his own cigarette and sighed the smoke out of his lungs, flicking the ash into the tray from before.

“Yeah, he was quite hurt at that, and how you told him to fuck off. If it sounds like I’m lecturing you by the way...that’s literally my job so deal with it. But you should go and apologise to him. He didn’t sleep at all last night, and he won’t really speak so...yeah.”

They sat there in silence, just listening to the rain beat down. Legosi was doing the same a few doors down. After a while, Louis got up and went to the guest bedroom and he knocked on the door three times before entering.

“Hey, Legosi? It’s just me, I wa-“

“Fuck off, Louis. I don’t want to speak to you.”

This caused the deer to stop midway through his sentence and he just...completely froze. For a moment, he didn’t know what to say. He thought about going towards the wolf, and he thought about leaving the room. He chose neither, unsure of what to do.

“I can still smell you. Leave me alone.”

Louis closed the door and leaned against it, now feeling annoyed.

“To be fair, it’s my home so I can be in here if I want. I wanted to talk about last night, but you’re clearly pissed off.”

“Not as much as you when you were drunk because you told me to go rub my dick with the Professor! That really hurt me, Louis! And then you threw your past at me. I know that it sucks and I’m sorry about that, but it’s not my damn fault!”

In all truth, Louis felt extremely shitty about saying those things. It wasn’t the canines fault at all, but he didn’t think about that at the time. He wanted to go over to Legosi and cuddle him, or at least just be close. Louis approached the bed and Legosi still refused to look at him, his body visibly stiffening.

“I know it’s not, and I was out of order for that. Legosi, please? I’m really sorry.”

“I just wanted to make sure that you were okay, but it’s fine. I’ve asked you to get out because I wouldn’t want you to be here when me and the Professor rub our dicks together.”

The final words were uttered disgustingly, and filled with a lot of anger and hatred. Louis knew that he deserved that comment and he moved away from the bed. Although he knew that Legosi only said that to get back at what the deer had said, it still hurt him to hear that...considering what happened on Louis’ sofa. Legosi hated saying it but he felt angry, and that outweighed how much he didn’t like what he said.

“Alright. Leo will be in soon with breakfast.”

With that, Louis left the room and went back to his own. Sergio wasn’t there, and the cervid was grateful for that so he flopped down on his bed, being mindful that his antlers didn’t skewer the pillow or scrape the headboard. He did it a few times and he could only describe that as claws digging into a chalkboard, but that feeling is on your head so you can feel the vibrations and everything instead of feeling it in your hands.

(To all those with phantom touch...I’m sorry. That hurt me too. If you don’t have phantom touch, then you’ve been spared a lot of discomfort, especially if you know exactly what the chalkboard and nails feeling feels like.)

Louis felt strange, like a bad strange. His stomach was currently doing backflips, his heart hurt and his head just wanted to explode. Thankfully, he was distracted by a knock at the door.

“Come in.”

Louis wasn’t even surprised when he saw Legosi instead of Leo or Sergio. He just lit another cigarette and kept his gaze away from the wolf.

“You tell me to leave you alone and then you come in here a minute later. What’s wrong with you, you dumb dog? Got some clingy issues?”

The remark wasn’t needed, but the deer felt it to be genuine. Maybe Legosi was clingy, who knows? They hadn’t been together long enough to find out.

“The Professor sent me, we weren’t in the mood for rubbing our dicks together.”

Sarcastic but necessary...maybe? The wolf closed the door behind him and Louis blew some smoke at an angle which would cloud one another’s vision of themselves.

“I...I’m sorry that I was rude to you like that.”

“All I wanted to do was explain myself to you but...actually, fuck it, I’m going to stop myself. Continue, please.”

“Really, Louis? You honestly believe that you need to explain yourself to me of all animals? I held you crying on your bathroom floor, I rocked you until you calmed down. I saved your life, killed AND took a bullet for you.”

The canine sat down on Louis’ bed, who was watching him intensely.

“I don’t blame you for drinking, especially after the life that you’ve had. And I’m not criticising you for it, I just wanted to make sure that you didn’t drink TOO much, you know? I love you, Lou, and I don’t want to lose you. But, I’m sorry. I should have listened to you when you just told me to leave you.”

Before the deer could say anything, Legosi went to the door and left, closing it behind himself. Meanwhile, a million thoughts were racing around beneath the antlers. Louis didn’t know what to do, but he knew that he wasn’t hungry or happy. He just wanted to fall into a hole in the ground and completely disappear. He looked over to the bottle of alcohol next to his bed and sighed. The canine wasn’t exactly happier than his counterpart, he felt extremely unhappy compared to the deer. Louis was more or less in a small state of shock.

“Louis? You okay?”

The door swung open and, holding a silver tray, Leo walked in looking as dapper as usual. He set the tray down on the bed and sat next to the cervid.

“No, not really. I can’t stop screwing things up with my partner. No matter what happens, it always turns out to be my fault and I hate it. He got hurt and now he’s in danger because of me.”

A tear fell down his left cheek, and the young panda wiped it away with a napkin, always holding a sweet smile.

“It’s okay Louis, don’t worry about it. If he chooses to stay with you even through everything, then maybe you need to decide whether you see your life being better together compared to without. You’ll be able to protect him, and he will always protect you, which he has been.”

Face red, the deer looked at him in surprise.

“You’re asking me to propose to him if I decide to treat him better and just roll with it?”

“Oh no, no no no. I wasn’t suggesting a proposal, I mean, how long have you guys been together?”

Louis smiled and brushed his damp cheek.

“More or less two months, and he means the world to me.”

“Then you’ve already made your decision. If you’re gonna propose, then wait for a really special occasion to ask him.” 

And with that, Leo stood up and left the room, closing the door gently. Meanwhile, Louis was just sat there, dumbfounded at how much he realised that he needed the advice from Leo. He knew what he needed to do.

Love you all!~ NinesKnives ❤️


	33. Still Alive

Hello everybody, NinesKnives here! I’m sorry that I’ve not uploaded anything in a few weeks, a lot happened in my life but I promise that I’m still writing and there will be a chapter up in the next couple of days! If you wanna chat with me and stay in the loop, I’m usually on Discord when I have some time. Please feel free to join, say hi and join my small It’s Only Instinct server. I really hope that I’ll see you there! Thanks for being patient with me, I know it’s a bit of a pain to wait this long for a chapter and I am sorry for that.

Discord server: https://discord.gg/Xxs5KSW

Love you all! ❤️💙💜💚💖💝💛🧡💕🖤😘🥰


	34. Chapter Twenty Nine

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everybody! Told you I’d get the chapter out. Thank you so much for almost 2300 hits, I really cannot thank you enough and it means the world to me that so many people enjoy reading it! I’ll definitely be working on more, with a better upload schedule. Until next time!
> 
> ~NinesKnives
> 
> Discord server. Send memes: https://discord.gg/Xxs5KSW

Obviously, Louis knew that proposing right now would be a stupid idea, what with everything that’s happening in their lives right now and he wanted to get all of that out of the way, in the past and locked away at the back of the attic in a chest with no key before he would propose to Legosi. If they’d been together for a few years, then maybe it would be different, the deer wasn’t sure. He had no clue how Legosi would feel about that, and Louis seemed certain that it would be good to leave that idea alone for now. Distracting himself, he took the lid off the tray that Leo brought in, and he smiled as he looked down at the oaty flapjack, syrup dripping off the sides with two strawberries as eyes and blueberries as a smile. It looked delectable and Louis didn’t save any time before tucking in to his personalised breakfast.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sighing quietly, the Labrador closed the curtains beneath his bed where his wolf friend would sleep.

“Legosi still not back yet?”

The English Sheepdog brushed some fur away from his eyes, curiously trying to look at the canines bed.

“No, he’s been gone for days. I hope that he’s alright.”

“Yeah...me too.”

He tried to push out the thoughts of Legosi being more hurt out of his head, but not with much avail. Jack sincerely hated the idea of his friend getting injured, or just being in a situation where Jack can’t protect him...even though Legosi would be the one who defended Jack. Maybe he’d come home soon.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Legosi finished eating his breakfast and placed the bowl onto the tray, then the tray onto a bedside table. He looked at the book that Louis had gotten for his birthday, and he opened it up. He wanted to read.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I climbed down off the cell tower, thankful for having a tough grip. I spotted a cafe a few blocks away and my stomach growled, which told me to go and scavenge for some food. I kept my gun close, I didn’t know when I would need it and if there was anyone else, I might have to worry about hostile survivors.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Legosi sighed, putting the book down as the knock on the door disrupted him.

“Come in.”

Creaking, the door opened and Louis poked his head around, but he didn’t make eye contact with the wolf.

“Hey, can I come in?”

The deer felt nervous, but was relieved when the canine nodded and he sat on the bed, his eyes glancing to the book.

“Oh, you’ve been reading more of that.”

“I only read a few lines, before I was interrupted. What do you want, Louis?”

Ouch.

“...you know what? Forget it, I shouldn’t have come in. Go back to your book.”

“For fucks sake, Louis, just say what you want to say.”

It’s very clear that the wolf was irritable, and he had good reason to be. Louis swallowed.

“I know that I keep fucking up, Legosi. I’m sorry. I don’t know why I am this way towards you, but I don’t want to be. You deserve a lot more than the shit I give you and-“

“I’ve heard this before.”

After being cut abruptly, Louis stared at the wolf, who was staring back. His heart sank, and he swallowed again before nodding to himself.

“Yeah, you’re right.”

“But, Louis...I forgave you before, didn’t I?”

The sudden softness in Legosi’s voice made the cervid turn to look at him, surprised.

“I-uh y-yeah, yeah you did...but you shouldn’t have to.”

Legosi shuffled close to Louis and took his hand, placing it on the larger animal’s knee and he gripped it gently.

“Louis, I’m sure that I’m going to really get to you sometimes as well. Our relationship is very hostile, but that’s because of hostile events which then affect us. All of that aside, I think that we’re doing really well. Just please don’t say the same things as last night, okay?”

Louis wanted to cry. He wanted to hug the wolf and cry, but he thought that the hug would suffice. He wrapped his arms around his boyfriend and squeezed him a little, Legosi returning the hug.

“I love you, you know.”

Legosi chuckled softly and kissed Louis.

“I love you too, deer. Have you eaten breakfast?”

The deer looked at the empty metal tray, a little confused.

“I have, and I see that you have too. Why do you ask?”

The canines tail was wagging a little now, and he seemed a bit excited.

“Just checking, because I’d like you to come in here and spend some time with me. If you’re busy, then I totally understand and I-mmfh!”

Out of nowhere, Louis pounced on the wolf and pressed their lips and bodies together, Legosi falling backwards onto the bed with the deer on top of him. Louis’ hand started trailing across his lovers fur, then his shirt...then down to his trousers (jeans, pants, whatever) and he let out a small chuckle.

“You already really happy to see me?” he said, with a surprising huskiness to his voice and Legosi realised that it turned him on quite a bit as he blushed, looking down at the tent he was pitching.

“Y-yeah...”

At this moment, Legosi breathed in and took a large whiff of Louis’ scent, sending a small shiver down his spine and the deer picked up on it.

“Oh, you enjoy my scent, hm?”

Louis got onto his knees and lifted off his shirt, revealing his torso. He still had some dark bruises, but he was healing quite well thankfully. Legosi licked his lips as the cervid continued to properly undress himself. Then, he moved over to the wolf and unbuttoned his shirt one by one and then pushed it off his body. Louis knew that Legosi was bigger built than he was, but it didn’t matter too much. Legosi then rolled over and pushing his trousers (I don’t care anymore, you know what I mean XD) down to the floor, his underwear protruding with his hardness. Louis leaned over, opened the drawer and pulled out some lube, wiggling his butt seductively for his lover and Legosi almost salivated at the sight as he removed his underwear quite quickly. With the lube in his hand, and his cock, cute and twitching between his legs, Louis spoke in an unnaturally soft voice;

“Which one of us wants to do this?” 

Legosi bit his lip and smiled in such a sexy, lust filled way that he didn’t even need to speak to give an answer, and his adorable and ‘softboi’ deer smiled back.

“Alright then. Just be gentle.”

Louis squirted some lube onto his fingers, and the bottle made a noise which made the wolf chuckle, and applied it to his entrance, making a little gasp at how cold the liquid is. He then took Legosi’s bigger member in his hand, which caused both animals to blush. Louis squeezed some lube onto his partners’ meat stick (love that phrase) and rubbed up and down, lathering it everywhere.

“O-ohh, mmh...”

Louis bit his lip, looking at his lover with heavy passionate intensity, adoring the noises that he made as they also made his cock twitch. The cervid moved his body over the canine, who laid on his back and positioned his entrance over the tip of his lover. Legosi put his hands on Louis’ legs and his eyes went up to the deer’s.

“You ready for this?”

“Yeah. You?”

“Yeah.”

Their voices spoke so softly, it was so fucking romantic and they loved it more than anything in the world. They loved each other more than anything in the world. Louis lowered himself down gently, with the help of his partner and with a small, pained gasp followed by a moan, Legosi was inside of his adoring lover. Slowly thrusting upwards, the canine moved one of his hands and placed it on Louis’ chest, ruffling his fur. Louis started to push himself downwards, feeling the urge to take Legosi’s dick and moaned a little louder, feeling his tight hole stretch. 

“A-ah...f-fuck, Legosi...”

Some instinct in the canine must have taken over because after hearing the pleasurable noise, and breathing in his beautiful scent, he pushed down on Louis more and began thrusting upwards into the deer harder and faster, making Louis yelp and moan in pleasure as well as pain. Legosi then wrapped his arms around Louis, and did some kind of manoeuvre that got their positions swapped so Louis’s legs were wrapped around Legosi and the smaller animal was on his upper back. He looked up at his larger wolf boyfriend, a little shocked and definitely curious as to how this was going to go, but very passionately too. He felt the wolf’s arms and hands on his back and he realised that he was completely at his lovers mercy. Luckily for him, Legosi wasn’t going to show any. He wanted everything from his partner. Legosi gripped Louis’ fur, not too hard and began thrusting pretty damn quickly, and deep too with a powerful sense of love and horniness.

“O-oh f-fuck! Mmfh, Legosi~!” 

Moaning quite loudly, his hands not knowing where to grab while he felt his insides getting roughly pounded by his lovers thick, pulsating cock. Legosi was making some smaller huffing noises, occasionally letting out a noise.

“F-fuck y-yes baby, fuck me good...ah! Ah-mmfh...~!”

Louis could not contain himself, he started rubbing his own cock, discovering that he has already been dripping quite a bit, but it felt good along with the lube in his hands and he also couldn’t contain the noises that were coming out of his mouth. Legosi gave his lover a passionate, half lidded stare as he rammed his cock deep inside of the submissive deer’s tight ass, growling a little now and one of his hands slid out from beneath Louis, before moving to the cervid’s throat, squeezing gently and-

**KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK**

Both of the animals heard the noise at the same time and froze completely, ripped out of their sexual trance and their eyes darted to the door, moving at the same time to cover themselves.

“Good morning boys. It seems that you discussed the argument last night and you’ve fixed your relationship.”

Neither of the two naked boys could say anything, they were way too fucking shocked at seeing the Professor stood by the door, inside the room. Now for context, the bed isn’t exactly far from the door so that means the Professor saw...everything. Maybe not Louis’s cock but everything else, and they didn’t like that.

“I’m sorry for coming in. I knocked many times already but you didn’t answer so I came in. Louis, your father wants to go for a drive, and we’re all going to. Be downstairs in five.”

With that, he pushed up his glasses and left the room, closing the door behind himself. Louis and Legosi just stared at the door, completely stunned.

Oguma grabbed his coat and cigarettes, as well as his silenced handgun and made his way to the door when he heard a noise. He didn’t know what it was, but he ignored it. If he did hear it properly, he would have recognised Louis screaming the word “FUCK” at the top of his lungs.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Pressing his lips against the other animal, the Bengal tiger moved his hand away from the Dall sheep’s cock, a trail of sticky liquid on his fingers. Pina was panting softly, his face red and his eyes closed, and then he smiled and chuckled.

“Mmh, that felt good sweetie.”

Bill smiled and kissed his lover before licking the sheep’s seed off his fingers.

“I know it did, I did it to you.”

“Heh. You’re always so full of yourself.”

This got a rise from Bill, but a playful one and he laid a hand on Pina’s lower torso.

“Hey, that’s not true. You’re always full of me.”

Pina let out a laugh, and he smiled, placing his hand onto Bill’s, gazing into his eyes.

“You’re adorable, you know.”

“Nah, that’s you.”

They both kissed each other and stood up, getting fully dressed before leaving the Professor’s office.


	35. Chapter Thirty

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Discord server: https://discord.gg/Xxs5KSW
> 
> Join me. I need friends.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heyo everybody, NinesKnives here! I want to start by saying a massive thank you to everyone who has read It's Only Instinct so far because I've noticed that today, we hit 2500+ hits! Stay safe, stay healthy and stay alive. Love you all!

Feeling extremely awkward and angry, Louis stormed out of the bedroom to go to the dining hall, and he barely even had a shirt on. Legosi, on the other hand, was dressed, but he was a little sore thanks to Louis, not that he minded. He just wished that they were able to finish their raunchy love-making session. On his way out, Louis grabbed his jacket which contained his cigarettes, lighter and phone. He burst through the door with a very loud noise, emanating from the metal handle slamming into the laminated oak wall behind him. A meek, shy wolf appeared moments after and he couldn't even look at anybody when they all sat at the table. I say "all", but Louis didn't want to sit down. If I could find the word to accurately describe how angry this big bitchy pissed off deer was, I think I'd be a published author with at least two separate books. He was MAD.

"You mind explaining to me what the FUCK that was, Sergio?!"

Bringing his hand down hard on the table was enough to make everybody except for Oguma almost jump out of their chairs. Which was another thing...who the fuck is that? 

Sergio took off his glasses and laid them on the table calmly, glancing at the unfamiliar figure and then back at the angsty deer he just cock-blocked.

"I hardly think that now is the best ti-"

"NOW ISN'T A GOOD TIME?! ARE YOU FUCKING SERIOUS?" Louis exploded, seething at the poor choice of words. "If ANY time was a bad time, it would have been ten minutes ago. You walk into my room with NO warning and, what? Just stand there being all fucking creepy? Do you have any idea how you made-"

Shit shit shit, I've got like half a second to change my sentence, I do NOT want to slip up that I've just been balls deep inside of Legosi. Ugh, thats a gross phrase I hope I never hear or think again.

"-me feel, jus coming in and taking away my privacy like that?"

Louis did have a point, the Professor was a guest there. Then again...

"Actually, Louis, first of all; that room has all of my belongings in there so I'm allowed to go in. Secondly, like I already told you, I knocked already. A lot. You didn't hear me because you were...busy and that is NOT my fault. Thirdly, don't come in here screaming at me when we have guests. I do not think that your father would appreciate it." The gazelle briefly looked at Oguma, who nodded in agreement. "There you go. Now, sit down, apologise and keep that damn tongue in your mouth."

That told him. Louis stood there, mouth agape for a few seconds, and then sat down silently. Legosi gave him a sympathetic half smile and touched his leg under the table. Oguma sighed and clicked a pen a few times, seemingly a little irritated.

"NOW, us four are going for a drive. I do not want any bickering or anything of the sort for the drive there and back. I have an important business meeting, and Louis, as the sole heir, you need to understand how a business works before you can consider running the Horns Conglomerate. Sergio and...Lougosi?(CORRECT GUESS)...Legosi, my mistake, you two have to come with us, it's a protection thing, you see. We can't leave you here because if they kidnapped Louis from a school, who knows what the Shishigumi could do here?"

All of them had to admit, the final sentence was quite ominous, and it got the point across. They all went out the front of the building, where a black sedan was waiting. The mysterious figure walked past the car and out of the gate, disappearing promptly. Louis just stared after them for a moment, wondering who they were. They didn't seem familiar in the very slightest...could it be one of fathers friends? Legosi didn't pay so much attention, he was still trying to pretend that his behind wasn't sore as hell. For a minute, he thought that the Professor or Louis was going to out their...activity, and he was very thankful that it stayed out of conversation. The two deer, gazelle and the canine all climbed in the car, Louis being mildly surprised that Legosi actually fit in the vehicle. Once everyone had clipped in their seatbelts, Oguma started driving. Louis, who was next to Legosi, with the Professor up front, picked up on this.

"Father, why are you driving? Don't you have someone else to do that, or what about that other guy who was in the room with us?"

"You talk an awful lot, Louis. After your outburst earlier, I want you to be quiet. I'm driving because I want to, is that okay with you?"

Louis swallowed, looking out of the window. He wanted to rest his head on Legosi, but...not around Oguma.

"I...of course, father."

They rounded a corner, pulling out past a candy shop.

"Good. I'm glad to know that I'm authorised by my adopted son to drive a car that I bought with my own money. Anyway, do you remember when I brought you here when you were younger?"

The car stopped a little ways ahead of the store, the engine making a quiet idling sound. A stranger approached the window, dressed in all black and he pushed a package through the window, which Oguma took and then the mysterious figure walked away. Small meetings like this was pretty common, so Louis thought nothing of it. His mood wasn't great, but thinking back to the days when Oguma would take Louis into the litte store as a weekly treat, if he behaved. It certainy worked as an incentive for him to do as he was told.

"Yeah, I do. If I was good, you'd always buy me chocolate sticks that tasted like carrots. Why do you ask?"

For a moment, Louis wondered if they would be going inside, being back here again made him feel like when he did as a younger back, happy and giddy. Oguma smiled and started pulling away, heading towards their destination.

"No reason. I just wanted to see if you remembered."

Oguma spoke softly, glancing at the Professor. Louis looked over at Legosi, whose tail was wagging softly, brushing up against the leather seat. The deer leaned over and tapped him on the shoulder, trying to not make too much noise.

"What's got you so excited?"

Legosi, who clearly wasn't trying to be quiet, looked at Louis and smiled, giving him a heavy grin.

"I love car rides! The feeling of the cool wind brushing through my fur, the sun on my face, I love it! Not to mention the car seats. I mean like, the leather warms me up really good, just please don't leave me in here with the windows up, I might die." For half a moment, he turned serious but then quickly snapped back to his happy self. Legosi couldn't sit still, either and he kept wriggling around, clearly very excited. Louis couldn't help but smile, watching his lover not worry about anything, enjoying himself so completely carefree. It was adorable, and he couldn't get enough of the canines smile. Funny, he used to hate seeing that face and now he can't get enough of it. After about half an hour of driving, and Louis simply falling more in love with Legosi, they all arrived at their destination. Oguma pulled up outside and turned the engine off and he turned around in his seat.

"Legosi and Sergio, I must request that you two stay in the vehicle. Me and Louis won't be in there for very long, maybe ten minutes at the most. Louis, are you ready?"

The older buck gave Louis a certain side glance, and he felt that he knew something could go wrong...very wrong. He nodded and got out of the car, walking alongside Oguma. Louis wore his standard punk get up, showing off yet another piece of My Chemical Romance merchandise, and Oguma was sporting a brown three piece suit and a hat. After checking behind themselves to make sure that Legosi or Sergio wasn't looking at them, Oguma reached into his pocket and pulled out a chrome black handgun, engraved with a Horns Conglomerate kind of livery (skin). Louis saw it and pulled his own handgun out of his jacket breast pocket.

"This'll be yours when I die, son."

He loaded the weapon and the younger deer did the same. He knew what was going to happen. They would go inside, talk business and there's a chance that it'll end up in a shootout. The trouble is, Louis didn't know who he was going up against but Oguma did. Once their weapons were concealed, OGguma knocked on the door and stepped back. Louis felt increasingly nervous, noting the headache that he was slowly developing. With a loud creak, the door opened and a familiar animal was revealed.

"Oguma. Louis. Come with me."

Free stepped backwards, letting the two herbivores inside and then closed the door. It was safe to say that father and son were both nervous and hesitant. The lion led them through a couple of hallways, saying absolutely nothing and the sounds of voices slowly grew as a bright light was beginning to reveal itself, opening up to a decently big office. An older lion stood up from the desk, who Louis had mentally deduced was the boss. But what were they doing here...wait, no...it can't be...

"Oguma, it is a pleasure to finally meet you. Please, come in and sit down. Same for you, Louis. Good to see you again."

The younger cervid felt for the handgun tucked into his waistband, grateful that it was there to help his nerves. He just hoped that he would never have to use it. He didn't talk, but he sat down next to his father. To be honest, as volatile as their relationship is, they both understood that business is business, nothing more. Even if they broke down in the car and started screaming at each other, the moment that they walked in through the front door, they were united with their one goal in mind; get out alive and together.

"I am glad that you arrived. May I offer some tea for you both?"

Both animals refused, but the lion called over a servant anyway who poured him some tea. He waited until the sound of flowing liquid stopped and took a sip before sighing complacently, setting the cup back down.

"So, before anything, I want to apologise again for what happened, on behalf of the Shishigumi. Myself and Free here want to extent our apologies to you so this should serve as compensation for your troubles, once again."

Sliding an envelope across the table, Louis reached over and took it. He gave Oguma a concerned glance before opening it, his eyes widening at the sum on the paper.

"That's...I don't..."

He didn't know how to respond to that. Truthfully, who does know how to respond to receiving 5 million yen? He gave the paper to Oguma, who read it and folded it, lying it back on the table.

"I presume that this is also compensation for my son taking over from you, correct?"

The lion chuckled, and Free looked around the room. He seemed quite harmless.

"I've heard that you're always straight to the point. That's fine. Honestly, yes. That money is technically a bribe, but I have also had another thought. I don't want Louis to lead us, I just want him to join. Start off at lower ranks, and work his way up."

Louis looked at Oguma, then Free, then the boss and he shook his head.

"I'm sorry, but no. Your group kidnapped me, almost murdered me, disfigured me, almost killed Legosi and the Professor, and now they're murderers because they had to kill your guys to save me. I understand that it wasn't meant to go down that way. If it did, I'd be dead, right? After everything...I'm sorry that some of your lions died but I don't think that I can be part of this group who want to kidnap and murder animals like me, my father and my friends. If that is all, I believe we are done. Thank you for seeing us, and I look forward to hopefully working together in future with a more mutually beneficial exchange. Good day."

Louis stood up and Oguma started rising from his seat when the boss sighed, leaning forwards. Louis didn't pay any attention until he heard a click, and the two deer froze.

"I'm sorry, Louis. I don't remember ever giving you two an option within this. I did before, but it looks like I don't have a choice, much like you don't."

It took a couple of seconds, but Free just stood there until he realised that he needed to take his gun out. When he did, he was a little shaky. Unstable. The scariest kind of person behind a gun is one that doesn't have control of their emotions. Louis pulled his out and ducked behind the chair, hoping that it was thick enough to maybe stop a bullet and Oguma did the same. They were stuck in a standoff, and it mattered who fired first.


	36. Chapter Thirty One

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: Blood and death.
> 
> Also, one hundred hits in less than a day? God, I love you all.

Unclipping his seatbelt, the deer gave his lover a quick glance before climbing out of the vehicle, leaving him and the gazelle. Obviously for safety reasons, they weren't allowed to leave the car. Louis left his cigarettes in the car, and Legosi decided that Louis wouldn't mind if he had one. Out of politeness, he offered the Professor one and took one for himself, putting the packet down.

"Thank you."

After speaking considerably quickly, the Professor put the cigarette in his mouth and pushed his glasses up, then started looking for his lighter...making as much noise as he could while doing so. Did he not want to speak to Legosi, or even be in the same car as him? The canine pondered for a moment, then decided that it might be better if he didn't bring it up. Then another thought hit him.

"Are we allowed to smoke in the car? I mean, we can't get out."

The Professor had found his lighter and held it just at the end of his own cigarette, thinking.

"You're right. I don't think we'd be able to roll down the windows. Oh well." He didn't really care, and neither did Legosi. They both lit their cigarettes and didn't, of course, think about what to do with the ash and the butt. Maybe they'll have to slightly open the door. Legosi felt extremely awkward, being alone with him...especially after what happened before, and then this morning to add to it. Still, it really affected him and he knew that he needed to say something, but what?

"Professor...I, uh...earlier was..."

Legosi struggled to come out with a sentence, he knew what he wanted to say, but his mouth (and these hands of mine) stopped him from getting his words out. Was it as awkward for the Professor? Nonetheless, the gazelle turned in his seat and blew some smoke to the side, but he couldn't make direct eye contact.

"Yes, Legosi?"

There was something about the formality in his voice in that moment that calmed Legosi down, well, got him more relaxed anyway. He took a drag of smoke, blew it away and took a deep breath.

"I...I'm sorry that we didn't respond earlier, and f...for what you saw..."

His mind went back to the moment the Professor walked in on Legosi getting dominated by Louis, and that same feeling of awkwardness came hitting back quickly. Legosi just kind of closed his eyes a little and slunk back in the chair, retreating into himself. Sergio watched him and spoke quite softly, understanding that Legosi was starting to close off into himself.

"Legosi, it's fine. I'm sorry for walking in, and if I'm honest, I didn't really see much. Not from you, anyway. I mean, I'm a bit awkward about that, I can't even begin to imagine how you feel. I'm really sorry, and I'm going to apologise to Louis as well when he comes out of the meeting, maybe later back at the Horns."

Feeling like the atmosphere was still a little tense, the Professor thought that maybe something else was needed instead.

"You know, I kind of enjoyed what I saw." He let out a few forced chuckles, trying to make sure that Legosi understood that it was a joke...even though it wasn't...and unfortunately, it didn't get any response from the canine. He stayed curled up into himself, occasionally puffing on his cigarette. What was taking Louis so long? Although it had only been a few minutes, he wanted his deer and Legosi also just wanted to go home, or back to Louis' at school, or 702 to see his friends. What kind of business was going on?

"Now now, we can do things the easy way or the hard way."

Louis let out a half-assed chortle, almost mockingly.

"You seriously think that we'll just bow down to you? Fuck no! Also, that's cliche as hell."

By this point, they were all stood up, pointing their weapons at each other. They truly were at a stalemate, and it would either end with at least two animals dying. In the best scenario, they all walk away from this, Louis doesn't have to join and they all go back to their lives. Worst case scenario, Louis and Oguma die, but not without the chance of killing the boss and Free. None of them really wanted to die, so it could go one of two ways. Fight instinct, or peaceful talk.

"I hardly think that you're getting the situation here. Either you join us, or you die where you stand."

Oguma slowly moved in front of Louis, his hand the steadiest.

"You are mistaken, here. If you think that you can just take my son from me and expect him to work with you under these conditions, then you are sorely mistaken."

Louis nodded his head firmly, pressing his hand against his father for a second to let him know that he appreciates the support but on the inside, he was conflicted. This man, who brought Louis so much suffering, is using his own body as a shield for the younger buck. What was going on...? Suddenly, out of nowhere, the door was kicked open and four more lions, armed with heavier weapons burst in, aiming their sights at Louis and his father and they both knew that they had no choice. Their weapons were torn out of their hands and two lions forced the two deer into the same chairs that they used as shields only moments ago.

"Now that I have your attention, I want to discuss this properly," the boss started walking around the room slowly, motioning with his gun as he spoke, "I've been running the Shishigumi for a long time now, and you know what? It's fucking great. I get all the booze, drugs, bitches and shit that I want. I don't even have to pay for it! Do you know what else I don't have to pay for? A grave, for you both. A simple mistake happened, I try to make amends, twice, and you still refuse my proposal. Why?"

"That 'simple mistake' almost cost me my fucking life, you moron!"

THWACK!! Louis growled and groaned in pain, but gritted his teeth, feeling his blood trickle down his face, and this just made him more mad.

"You hit my fucking son in front of me, I'm going to kill you!"

Louis took a few moments to recover from being whacked on the back of his head as it dazed him a little, causing his vision to go a bit blurry.

"YOU WILL LISTEN TO ME!" Goddamn, this guy has a power complex... "I really didn't want it to come to violence, I was hoping that you'd see it my way. If it wasn't for me, Louis, you'd be dead already."

The feisty cervid spat on the floor at the boss' feet, even though it was distasteful.

"Legosi and the Professor are the reasons why I'm alive, and my father..." he trailed off, knowing that he made a mistake.

"Ah, Legosi and the Professor. I assume the wolf and gazelle who retrieved you. Say, where are they now? I want to have a talk with them. Or maybe I'll just kill them once I'm done with you. Oh, or even I could kill them right in front of you."

"You're fucked up, you power hungr-oofh!"

Once more, Louis was struck on his head with the end of a weapon, causing him to fall to the floor. Luckily, he managed to hold out his hands to stop the fall from injuring himself more. Free watched Louis struggle, and he wanted to go and help him. Free didn't like this unnecessary violence, but he couldn't betray his boss...he'd...

"Nngh...f-fuck..." He felt where on his head it hurt the most and he winced, pulling his hand away and looking at it. He blinked a few times, definitely more dazed as he stared at the increasing amount of blood. Oguma couldn't do anything, he just stared at his son in horror. He could feel so much anger and hatred boil inside of him and he wanted to stand up and beat the living shit out of the Shishigumi boss, but he knew that if he did, they would both die then.

"Hey, boss."

Everyone turned around to look at another lion who must have walked in a few seconds ago, but the boss didn't need to look at him.

"I'm busy Agata, I need you to find me the gazell and the cani-"

An extremely loud, explosive bang echoed throughout the room, and Louis tried to look up at what it was. Through blurry and red eyes, the younger buck could make out the boss falling to the floor, holding his throat. Suddenly filled with horror, fear, surprise and panic, Louis crawled over to Oguma's chair, pressing the side of his head against his fathers leg, a bit like a scared child. Not taking their eyes off the dying man, Oguma held his son as close to him as he could as the lion named Agata walked fowards, holding his gun towards his employer, who was choking and suffocating on his own blood, thanks to the hole in his throat. Louis wanted to close his eyes, he didn't want to see this. It threw him back to the basement with the three other lions, and how he...

"God, I'm so fucking tired of you talking. Just shut the fuck up."

Struggling to hold onto his life, the boss tried rolling over onto his side to reach his weapon, but Agata stood over him and aimed his handgun point blank at his face, not even seemingly bothered at all. Free had dropped his weapon to the floor, in a state of total shock. The other lions with their automatic weapons simply lowered them, watching the chaos unfurl...or become contained. The boss pulled his hand away from his throat in a futile, last ditch attempt to save himself. Surely he'd know that you can't survive a bullet to the throat. For a second, his blood squirted everywhere as he coughed, making a disgusting squelching sound.

"By the way," he spoke firmly, glancing at the two deer, "that was cliche as fuck and you're a self-obsessed, power hungry egotistical moronic fucking maniac, who knows nothing about how to treat other animals and how to run a business. So long and goodnight."

Agata knelt down onto the boss' chest, applying a fair amount of pressure as he pushed his gun against the dying felines head. How long could he hold out for? Struggling to his feet, Louis used all of his strenght to stand and he moved forward to the boss. Louis reached forward and took Agatas' gun from his hands, feeling the weight before pushing it against the boss' temple.

"You aren't touching my fucking wolf, or my friend, or my father for that matter. You won't be allowed to desecrate this building, these people, this town, or this planet with your pitiful excuse of an existence. Now, before you die, I want you to know one thing. I'll be taking over the Shishigumi, and there is one thing I want to do before that."

As he finished his sentence, and looked into the pleading eyes of the feline, Louis pulled the trigger, blood instantly spraying on him and the floor, quickly pooling up around the deformed head. Louis stood up and turned to look at Agata.

"Thanks. Throw him to the Back Alley Market, he doesn't deserve a burial. As for the rest of you, clean this up and I want you to delete all records of my kidnap, my father and my friends."

"Wait, wait, wait. Who died and made you the new boss?" Another lion heard the gunshot and came in, but he shut up when he saw his ex-boss dead on the floor. "Oh."

Louis went over to Oguma and hugged him, but made sure to wipe the blood off him first, although he couldn't get it all. His father returned the hug, and Louis truly felt safe, in that moment.

"Are you okay, father?"

"My boy...I'm so proud of you."

That was it, those words that he had been longing to hear for his entire life. If it wasn't down to the fact that he just murdered a lion and took over their organisation, he would surely break down and cry. He tucked the gun into his waistband and stood up, helping Oguma too before giving him his weapon back.

"I don't need this yet, father. You keep it for now. Let's get out of here."

Without saying another word, or even another glance to any of his new employees, Louis and his father walked out towards the car, realising that they have one hell of a story to tell. But not now, Louis needed to rest.


	37. Chapter Thirty Two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Almost 2800 hits...wow...I don't know what to say. I'd love to speak with you all, so if you have the time then please join my server and say hi! We have 11 members, including myself and it's quiet so I would really appreciate it if you could join us!
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Climbing in with a pained gasp, Louis sort of fell onto the leather seat, his antlers luckily not scratching or damaging the seat. Legosi's eyes widened and he leaned over to help his lover.

"Louis! What happened, are you okay?"

Upon hearing the stress in the canine's voice, the Professor turned in his seat and saw a bleeding deer but he knew that he couldn't do anything.

"Nngh...I'm f-fine, let's go home. Just...let me sleep for a bit..."

Oguma climbed in the car and clipped his seatbelt, taking a glance at Louis.

"He's alright, just leave him be. He's earned it. Legosi, I got something for him but as you now see, he's sound asleep. I trust you can give this to him when he wakes up?"

Holding out a small package, presumably the same one that was given to him earlier, Oguma let out a small smile towards his adopted son, making sure that he didn't see the package. Legosi nodded and took it, stuffing it into his pocket.

"It smells kinda sweet, what is it?"

"It's a surprise for Louis, just please don't let him see it until we're home."

With that, they started driving back to the Horns Conglomerate in almost silence, aside from Louis snoring softly and the traffic occasionally passing by. Legosi stared idly out of the window, wondering what Louis and Oguma did inside, and why he was covered in blood? Still, he wasn't too concerned. If Oguma was okay with seeing him like that, then at least he knows that his deer wasn't hurt. The ride back was pretty uneventful and when they got back, Oguma had asked Legosi to wake Louis up.

"Mmfh...I-I'm awa--long yawn--ke..." He stretched as he yawned, his wrist brushing against his antler. He leaned on the larger canine for assistance as he was helped inside and luckily, the package was on the opposite side of Legosi's body. The Professor had branched off again with the Conglomerate owner, so Louis was helped to his bedroom. On the way, thankfully, he started to wake up more and was pretty okay when he sat down on the soft bed.

"Hey, how you feeling now?"

Louis rubbed his head, grateful that it didn't hurt as much now.

"I'll live. Sorry that we were in there for so long..."

"No, it's okay. I'm sure you had...matters to attend to. Anyway, I wanted to give you this. It was from your father and I don't know what it is. He said to open it when you're here."

Legosi pulled out the package and handed it to his lover, who was quite curious. He opened it up and when he laid eyes on it, his mouth opened and his eyes went wide.

"He got me the carrot flavour chocolate sticks...but he didn't go in...he must have got them before the meeting."

His voice broke around the end of the sentence, as he remembered eating them as a child. Louis was also quite shocked at the fact that Oguma had even bought them for him. Maybe his father wasn't as heartless as he thought...Legosi looked at the treats and wagged his tail softly, licking his lips a little. Louis smirked and stood up, taking one out and holding it in his hand.

"Sit, boy!"

Within a couple of seconds, Legosi had sat on the floor like a feral canine, his snout arched in the air as close to Louis' hand as he could reach.

"I didn't realise that I could control you like this..." He would be lying if he said that he got no entertainment from this. Legosi was looking up at him, his eyes wide and a faint little pout spread across his lips. Louis moved his hand down, almost brushing the candy against Legosi's lips before quickly pulling away, taking a bite out of it.

"Mmmh! Just as good as they use t-"

Louis was cut off by a considerably long whiny growl emanating from his lover.

"Hm? You okay?"

"You can't just tease me like that, it's unfair! I'm sat here waiting for you to give me some and then you wave it in my face and eat it! That's really mean!"

For some reason, Louis could not keep a straight face and he burst into laughter, much to the confusion of Legosi.

"You're waiting for me to give you something? You haven't even asked for it! Go on then, ask."

Legosi grumbled and sighed before looking into Louis' eyes, hopeful.

"May I have some, please?"

"Hmm, no. Ask me properly."

Legosi shuffled awkwardly a little at the request.

"Please?"

Louis waved the chocolate carrot stick around a little, obviously teasing now.

"Nooo, you have to ask me the right way. No words."

Hesitantly, Legosi raised his right hand and held it for Louis to grab. The cervid took his hand and smiled before moving the treat to his partners' mouth. Legosi used his other hand to take it and he bit it normally, chewing quietly. Louisn wrapped the others up and put them into the bedside drawer for a later time, sitting on the bed again.

"God, I need a cigarette."

Louis fumbled around in his jacket pocket but couldn't find them, so he started searching around him. Legosi held out the packet silently and turned away, seemingly irritated. Louis took one out of the pack and lit it, blowing some smoke up above his antlers.

"Legosi, you alright?"

"That was a really rude thing that you did."

Now this surprised the deer, as he realised that he was massively uninformed about canine behaviour. He stared at Legosi for a few seconds, mouth agape.

"What do you mean? I thought that canines...well, uh...I...shit...I'm sorry, Legosi I didn't realise that it was disrespectful to you. I don't know what I was thinking, I was just trying to be playful." He took another drag off his cigarette and Legosi shifted uncomfortably on the bed. His feelings were hurt, and the cervid knew that.

"I just...it's really demeaning to make me act like that. Yes, I'm a canine and yes, I'll obey commands like that but that's because it's in my nature from my ancestors as feral canines. I'm not feral and you should know that, Louis. I could eat meat and be like them, or I could attack you and eat you, like my ancestors would have done but I'm not like that. I thought you knew it for yourself, but I guess not. Please don't treat me like I'm nothing more than a dog because I'm your boyfriend, and I deserve better than that."

Legosi sighed and took a cigarette for himself, lighting it up too. Louis didn't stop him, he was frozen in place. Well, he still continued to smoke his cigarette but the deer couldn't take his eyes off a little bug crawling across the carpet, thinking and taking in what his lover had said.

"Legosi...I'm so sorry. You're right, I am wrong for treating you like that and I keep doing it without even knowing. You deserve to be treated better than that, and I promise you right now that you will be."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sitting back down in his office, the Professor put his glasses on the table. It was really nice of Oguma to bring me back, so I can continue working. But...why? Am I safe now? Oh well, I suppose I better not think about it. If I'm here, then I'm safe... A moment later, there was a knock at the door and the Professor called them in. A certain, very wooly animal walked in, followed by another certain tiger who both sat down at the desk. It took a moment for them to speak, they awkwardly shuffled about, wanting to say something but unsure of how to put it.

"Ser- I mean, Professor, we need your help with something. Well...I do..."

Nodding, the gazelle leaned i, intently listening.

"I uh, I have a friend who is seeing somebody else. It's interspecies, carni-herbi and also same sex. We're worried about them because they want to go public about it, but don't want to be pushed out from society. What do you think we should tell them?"

For once, Pina had nothing to say as he let Bill speak for them both. The Professor put his glasses back on and took a sip of water, thinking.

"Well, I think you should tell your...friend...fuck society. Animals out there are very shallow and narrow-minded, not to mention that they're just complete assholes. They like to stick to their own versions of reality, and that usually tends to be shared among most of society. Your 'friend' will always receive dirty looks or passing comments, but you need to reinforce to them that no matter what happens, their love for their partner and vice versa should be the only thing that matters. They shouldn't allow society to dictate their relationship, so I say again; fuck society." (Thank you very much, Mr. Robot for the "fuck society" part. Watch it, it's fucking brilliant.)

Bill seemed to be lost in thought, deeply considering the Professor's words and Pina smiled widely, his eyes squinting a little.

"Thank you, Professor. We'll be sure to relay the message to Billy's friend!" Sergio squinted now.

"Billy? That's a cute nickname. Also, I don't see why you think I don't know about you two. Just be careful around others, but don't hide it if you don't want to. Can I help you guys with anything else?"

"Uh, yeah, actually. You, Louis and Legosi have been gone for a little while. What's up with that?" Pina lifted his leg up onto Sergio's desk, ignoring the glances. Bill came back to reality as well.

"Oh yeah, I noticed that too. Jack keeps bugging me about Legosi."

"Well, you remember the incident with the lions? We had to stay somewhere, a safe house, if you will. I'm back now, but I'm unsure of Legosi and Lou-" The Professor was interrupted by his phone vibrating and he looked at his screen.

"Oh, speak of the devil. Legosi just texted me. Say, I have some business to attend to but if you give me your numbers, I'll create a group chat for us five?"

The animals exchanged numbers and, after thanking the Professor, Bill and Pina left the office hand in hand, definitely a hell of a lot happier and more comfortable with their relationship than they were five minutes prior. Sergio wiped his glasses and swiped on his phone, answering Legosi.

Leg: You there?

Prof: Yes, Legosi. Is everything okay?

Leg: No. I can't find you in the Horns, where are you?

Prof: I'm at Cherryton, I arrived about ten minutes ago. Can you tell me what is going on?

There was a pause before Legosi replied again. Was somebody in trouble?

Leg: It's Louis.

Leg: He broke up with me.


	38. Chapter Thirty Three

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I swear that I’m alive! Long chapter for all of you as a thank you for waiting for so long. If one good thing is coming out of entering lockdown again for the next month, I’ll have more time to write. Love you all!!!
> 
> https://discord.gg/Xxs5KSW

Shocked, the gazelle just stared at the words on his screen. “What? But they were fine this morning...” he began to type again.

Prof: I’m sorry to hear that, Legosi. Mind if I ask what happened?

He waited for a moment for a response. Once three little bubbles appeared on his screen, he knew that the wolf was there but he didn’t know that the wolf was crying, not that it would have been difficult to realise.

Leg: He thinks that it’ll be better for me, but I don’t know why.

Prof: I see, maybe he has a good reason for it. Come and see me, we’ll talk about this in person.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Knocking quietly, the dall sheep stood there with his lover. After a second or two, the door opened and the gazelle smiled at them.

“Good evening boys, what can I do for you?” He held the door open for them, his smile warm and welcoming. The animals came inside past him and one of them sighed.

“We need help, Professor.” Pina looked at the floor, shuffling his feet. Bill was a little red, showing embarrassment for the situation. Sergio nodded and held out an arm, directing them to his office couch. The pair sat down and he sat across them, pulling a chair close.

“What can I help with, Pina?”

“Well, you know that we’re dating, right? Okay so, we want to like, develop our relationship...I guess but I don’t know what we can do.”

“Yeah and there’s only so many times that you can fuck without it getting boring.”

As much as he hoped to completely ignore that comment, Pina couldn’t, understandably.

“You telling other animals that I’m boring in bed?”

“N-no, of course not! I’m just saying that it would be nice to do other things together, you know? As much as I love the sex, it’s really all we do and I wanna do more than that.”

Sergio leaned back in his chair, letting the pair discuss their own relationship goals.

“I enjoy the sex too, Billy. You know that. What if...I met your family? If they’re like you then they’d be really cool.”

Bill stiffened and looked away from his smaller counterpart, earning himself a curious glance from the Professor.

“I...uh, I don’t know about that, I don’t think you’d like them. They’re not like I am.” Bill didn’t say anything else about them. Didn’t stop Pina from asking.

“Come on, if you’re related to them then they can’t be that b-“

“Babe, stop. I don’t want you to meet them right now. Can we please stop talking about that?”

No animal spoke for a few seconds, the silence taking over. Sergio took this silence as an opportunity to continue speaking.

“Have you guys considered maybe going on a date together or something? Go get some food, watch a movie, go for a walk in the park...”

“Hey hold on now”, Bill chuckled, “you do know that MY generation don’t really do that sort of thing, right?”

The Professor leaned in closely, eyeing Bill up. It made him a little nervous as the gazelle looked him up and down. Pina on the other hand, smirked to himself. Bill was in for it now.

“Your generation, Bill? You mean the closeted homophobic gays who judge and hurt other animals simply because they aren’t like you, or who share your values? Or do you mean the ones who are continually disrespectful to the older generation, even in MY case, a COUPLE OF YEARS OLDER than you? Or, do you mean the part of OUR generation who actually know what’s good and are out working and contributing to society through multiple methods like teaching, working in healthcare or other roles. OR do you mean the part of your generation that sit there and complain at everything? The ones that don’t want to do anything aside from sit on their ass and do drugs, have sex and play video games, also known as ANIMALS YOUR GODDAMN AGE, Bill. It’s OUR generation, so firstly don’t call me old by excluding me. Secondly, I just listed a lot of things. Thi-“

“You mean that it’s okay for me to go and get drugs?”

Both Pina and Sergio were crushed by immeasurable disappointment in a facepalm moment, thanks to Bill. Sergio took off his glasses and wiped them, trying to find something to say.

“You don’t...after everything I ju..w-well you can’t-...ugh. Bill, you’re giving me a fucking stroke. Pina, go take him to dinner before he makes me go into cardiac arrest. No fucking drugs.” (Personally, I won’t judge. I can’t say whether to do them or not as it isn’t my place, but IF you are going to, do it safely for fucks sake. I can’t stress that enough. DO IT SAFELY and if you can’t do it safely, then consider whether it’s worth doing.

Before Bill could say anything else that would bring about an aneurysm (an-yur-ism) for the Professor, Pina took the Bengal tigers hand and left the office, giving the gazelle a wave before disappearing.

“He seemed kinda angry, don’t you think?”

Without slowing his pace, Pina replied to him.

“Did you not pay any attention to what he actually said?”

“Of course I did! He told us to go and get some food!”

Pina was about to object but stopped himself when he saw Bills smile and squeezed the tigers hand.

“We need to work on your conversational skills. What do you wanna eat?”

The pair stopped walking for a moment.

“I’m not sure, I know that there’s a new ramen place that opened up a few streets away from the Back Alley Market. I’ve looked at the menu and it seems quite nice, and they’re also serving...Legosi?”

The dall sheep blinked at him.

“They’re serving Legosi? What do you-“

Pina turned around and saw the tall grey wolf, the two dots connecting in his head. Legosi saw the pair and, realising that he couldn’t ignore them, he went over to them briefly.

“Hey guys.”

Pina hugged Legosi tightly, the sheep feeling a little bit happier.

“Hey dude, you alright? We haven’t seen you in a while.”

“Yeah, I’ve just, uh, been busy. You know how it is.”

Pina saw the dark bags under the wolf’s red eyes. He’s been crying. The sheep looked around for a few seconds, preparing himself to ask a question he knew the answer to.

“Where’s Louis? Surely you guys are joined at the hip, right?”

Legosi wiped his eyes and smiled, his eyes betraying the sadness in his face.

“He’s just busy, as always. You know how it is.”

Pina knew that it was a touchy subject, so he chose not to pry. “That’s fair enough, alright. Me and Billy are going on a date so we can’t stop. I’m sorry, Legosi.”

The gray wolf smiled and nodded.

“Yeah, that’s fine, I’ve got some things I need to do anyways. I’ll see you both later, have a good time.”

Waving, the canine passed Pina and Bill, going into the school again. Bill approached the ram, holding his phone out.

“I’ve got directions to the restaurant. Shall we make a move?”

Hand in hand, the pair left the school grounds. They were both looking forward to their date.

Although it was a pleasant day in the morning, it didn’t take long for the weather to change. Within the space of ten minutes of the dall sheep and Bengal tiger walking to the restaurant, the rain started coming down heavily. Bill put his phone in his pocket and groaned.

“Ugh, this fucking rain, man. It was fine a minute ago. I can’t use my phone, so if we need to then we can just hide under something and look for directions again.”

Their fur was more or less soaked, and the fur that wasn’t wet was pasted to their damp clothing.

“I wish I brought a coat with me. Wait, that looks like the place.”

Just a few feet away from them, the animals peered into the store. The smell of noodles, spices and other aromas filled their noses. It looked busy, but they made out a few tables which had no patrons and they decided to go there once they stepped inside. As they came in through the door, a young bovine approached them, clipboard in hand. Her hair was tied back and she wore a soft smile.

“Good afternoon, welcome to Ramen Track! Do you have a reservation, your group may already be here?”

Pina looked at Bill, and then at her curiously.

“What do you mean, his group?”

The cow looked at Bill and her face turned a little red.

“I-sir, I’ll be with you in a second.”

“I want a table of two for myself and my boyfriend here.”

Her face dropped, quick.

“O-oh, I’m so sorry! Please, right this way!” She hurriedly moved over to a table and seated the pair, placing menus down for them. “Call me over when you’re ready to order!” The waitress moved away to other tables and the carnivore and herbivore looked at the paper, deciding what they wanted. The waitress came back with a couple of drinks “on the house”.

“So, how’s Legosi?”

Pina was chowing down on a breadstick but stopped mid-chew.

“He seemed alright, I guess. He did ~~gulp~~ look like he’d been crying, but I can’t be sure.”

“Crying? I didn’t see Louis with him, you don’t think that-“

“It’s my best guess. We don’t hear anything from them for a while and then suddenly, Legosi and the Professor are back, but Louis is nowhere to be seen, especially as I thought he’d make a grand entrance with Legosi.”

“Maybe Louis isn’t coming back at all.”

The waitress came over again, holding four bowls of food and laid them on the table. She glanced at Pina and then Bill again.

“Hungry, boys? Now kitty, stick to the bowls.”

She left again and Pina scowled at her, after seeing Bill slump into the booth a bit more, hiding himself.

“I dunno, this kinda feels like a bad idea. People keep thinking that I’m going to eat you.”

“You already have, sweetie. Pay no attention to them, let’s just eat, alright?” He held the tigers hand above the table, making a point to everybody but nobody in particular. The pair ate and talked, laughed and enjoyed their time together.

“Wait wait, hold on! You almost killed Legosi?”

“You didn’t know? Either you’re the most oblivious animal I’ve ever met, or, well...anyways, yeah I did. Last year on the production of Adler, I took over from Louis when he broke his leg and me and Legosi had...issues, and we almost murdered each other on stage. The scars I have and the ones he has, on his back anyway, were from each other.“

After a few more minutes, the cow came over to take their bowls.

“Excuse me, you upset my boyfriend earlier on with your little “joke” or whatever. We came here for a good time together and we don’t need your insults. Don’t expect us to come back here again.”

This earned a few looks from other patrons. Her face went redder than before and she quickly whipped out her purse, making Pina think that she was either going to kill them or pay them hush money so she can keep her job. Both answers were wrong. She passed him a piece of paper and when flipped over, it was a photograph.

“I never meant any harm by what I said, as I hope you can now see that I’m in a carni-herbi-same-sex relationship too. Oof, that’s a mouthful. That tiger you see there? Her name is Hitomi and we’ve been together about two years now. I didn’t mean to upset you with my joke, me and Hitomi joke like that all the time to each other but I should have realised that not all animals are the same. I’m sorry and I can understand why you don’t want to come back.”

Brushing some wool away, Pina smiled at her and assisted Bill in passing the photograph back.

“That’s a beautiful photo. I’m sorry for getting jumpy, I don’t think that either of us realised. You two seem really happy together.”

She put the photo back in her pocket and lifted the bowls away.

“I’m going to make sure that you all have your dinner on the house, after my incident. I’m sorry that you felt uncomfortable on your visit here.”

Pina smirked and waved it off.

“Tell you what, I know how much effort you’re doing for this job. We’ll pay, but come back to the table to collect it only when we leave.”

She nodded at the request, even though she felt it was a bit strange. She brought them their check (cheque/bill) and went away to clean up. Once she had returned, she picked up the money and read the receipt. Someone wrote on it.

“Thanks for not conforming to what society wants us to be. Have an advance on your pay, “on the house”. Pina X Bill.” The bovine was absolutely flabbergasted when she read how much they tipped.

Hand in hand again, the two walked through the rainy streets. Pina kept shaking his fur to rid it of water and Bill took his jacket off.

“Here, wear this.”

“Aren’t you going to get cold and wet?”

Bill smiled and kissed Pina, their lips connecting for at least ten seconds. It felt wonderful, although the tigers feline tongue tickled Pina’s.

“Yes, I will. But if I’m wet, then you’re dry and I’m okay with that trade off.”

“Aww Billy! You’re so sweet!” He slid the bigger jacket over his body, emphasis on bigger. It looked like a short trench coat on the sheep.

“I’m not sweet. You literally tipped her 100,000 yen!”

“So? That’s not a lot of money.”

Bill stopped where he was walking for a moment and then ran to catch up.

“What?! How is that not a lot of money? We could have gotten our own place with that amount!”

Bill seemed to be in some kind of state of shock by this, but Pina was unfazed.

“Yeah I know, but I don’t want to do that yet so I don’t mind spending it. Plus, I want to support other animals like us.”

“That’s fair, you’re so sweet.”

The two walked back to the school in the rain, Pina grateful for the long coat. Bill on the other hand, didn’t mind the rain.

“Say, what do you think is going to happen with the school play? I have no fucking clue what’s happening with it. I mean like, are we still doing this gay play or Adler?”

“I dunno, I guess we’ll just have to see what happens tomorrow. I’m surprised that Louis and Legosi actually ended up getting together simply because of the kiss in the play. It’s kinda cute.”

“Yeah, and you were the first to judge them. Look how quickly things changed. Anyways, did you enjoy your date with me?”

Bill smiled and pulled Pina into a hug in the middle of the pavement, not caring about the rain.

“I had a wonderful day with you. What would you like to do now?”

“Well, I don’t know. We could watch a movie?”

This earned a small chuckle from the larger animal.

“We both know what that means.”

“Hehe, yup! I love you, Billy.”

The two shared a tender, loving and passionate kiss.

“I love you too.”


	39. Chapter Thirty Four

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Felt bad for leaving it on a cliff hanger.
> 
> Come and send me memes: https://discord.gg/Xxs5KSW

As the wolf passed his friends, he could feel his emotions rising and he wiped his eyes again, hopeful that Pina or Bill didn’t notice his sadness. The canine made his way to the Professor’s office and knocked on the door before entering. The gazelle was organising some paperwork and moved it to one side when Legosi came in.

“Hey, come and take a seat.”

Legosi sat down and sighed, putting his phone on the desk face down as to not distract him.

“I don’t know what to do. We were better earlier...as you...well, saw and then he broke up with me...”

Sergio lit a cigarette for himself and Legosi, who took it gratefully. They took a moment to breathe out their smoke, Legosi’s breathing being a little more shaky.

“Please tell me he broke up with you in person, at the very least.”

“Y-yeah...” Legosi nodded, unable to keep eye contact. He blinked a few times, stopping himself from crying more. “I don’t...I don’t get it. I was there for him when he was taken, I was there when he broke down crying in his bathroom, I was there for him whenever he needed me. I was there for him when he lost his fucking ear! I’ve always been there for him and I’ve always done everything I can and he just abandons me like this. What the fuck did I do wrong?! Why doesn’t he fucking want me after EVERYTHING I’VE DONE FOR HIM? WHY IS HE SO FUCKING SELFISH?!”

Legosi was shaking now, not out of sadness but anger, if that was even the correct word to apply. He took a moment to inhale some more smoke.

“Did he give you a reason why?”

“He wants to keep me safe.”

Safe? After everything that had happened?

“But...you took a bullet for him. Doesn’t he value that?”

Sniffling, the wolf shook his head.

“I-I guess not...what do I do?”

Sergio breathed in some smoke and exhaled, thinking.

“Have you tried calling him or something to talk?”

“Y-yeah...but he won’t answer me.” Another sniffle.

“I’ll try, maybe he’ll answer for me.”

The Professor held the cigarette in his mouth and his phone to his ear after pressing a few buttons. It rang three times.

“Hello?” He sounded depressed.

“Louis? It’s the Professor.”

“Let me guess. Legosi’s there with you?” His tone changed from depressed to something like...impatient?

“Yeah he’s here w-“ Beep. The Professor stared at his phone in disbelief. “Little shit just hung up on me!” The gazelle half threw his phone onto the desk, irritated.

“Wh-what did he say?”

“He said “Let me guess, Legosi’s there with you?” and when I started replying, he hung up. Legosi, he sounded depressed when he first answered and when he asked if you were here, his voice changed to that of annoyance, I think. Tell me exactly what he said to you.”

Legosi took a moment, understandably. He tried to fight back tears, and for the moment, he was doing it well.

“He sa-said that he wants me to stay away from him for my protection, and that as much as he loves me...he doesn’t want me to be near him anymore.”

“Is that it? I’d be pissed if someone said that to me.”

“Y-yeah...well, we have been arguing a lot recently. He was also caught in a gunfight earlier.”

Sergio stared at the wolf blankly, yet shocked.

“How the fuck is it that so much happens in such a short amount of time? I swear, I’ve been here for like what, a month, two? I don’t know anymore, I’ve been through enough shit to last a lifeti- WAIT DID YOU JUST SAY A GUNFIGHT?!”

Looking at the desk, the canine nodded and Sergio sighed.

“Fucking hell. That must have been why he came out covered in blood and exhausted.”

The two fell silent for a moment, Sergio thinking of what to say and Legosi being too emotionally destroyed at the time to speak.

“I think...you should just give it some time. Maybe what happened today is running through his head and he doesn’t want you to get hurt, but this isn’t the best way to go. Come by tomorrow, I’m going to be working on the play. I need to decide what to do, whether to go through with my idea or Adler or something else...”

It was very clear that the Professor was stressed out, and Legosi coming to him about this certainly didn’t help. The wolf couldn’t know though, and he wasn’t blamed.

“Alright...I’ll see you tomorrow.” As he stood, Legosi finished his cigarette and turned to the door, only to stop halfway. “Thanks...you know, for this. It means a lot.”

Maybe the Professor needed to hear that because it made him feel instantly better, even if by a small amount.

“You have my number, let me know if there’s anything I can do.”

Nodding, Legosi left the room and started walking towards his old room. Once he was out of sight, he let the tears fall.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Opening the door to his dorm room, he was instantly greeted by a familiar canine jumping on him. Literally. Legosi fell backwards in the hall and hit his head on the carpet (rug). Jack jumped off of him almost as quickly as he pounced on the wolf.

“Oh my- I’m so sorry, Legosi! You okay? You hurt? Anything I can-...L-Legosi...?”

The Labrador sniffed him a little bit and then leaned in close to the canines face, then pulling back, worried. He looked behind himself in the room and then back at Legosi.

“Y-you...you’ve been crying...”

The Lab helped the wolf to his feet and they both entered the room, Jack being more careful now. Legosi was about to sit down when he saw another animal drinking a cup of coffee. An orange deer, similar coloured fur to Louis although he had dyed brown fur below his antlers. He wore a black shirt and jeans, making Legosi wonder for a moment if the deer had changed bodies. The shirt looked rather messy, the black having faded in some places more than others. It looked quite odd, really. He had a few tattoos as well, but Legosi couldn’t make out what they were. He also had a bandage wrapped around his left hand and wrisr. The unfamiliar animal looked at Legosi for a moment and then went back to his coffee, not really caring. Jack realised that the atmosphere MAY have been a little awkward, thankfully.

“O-oh...u-um, this is Legosi, he’s my friend and he used to stay in this room just under my bunk. Legosi, this is...um, I’m sorry, I didn’t catch your name?” He had hoped that the animal with antlers picked up on the prompt to give his name.

“I know you didn’t, that’s right.”

His voice was a hell of a lot lower than Legosi had anticipated, rougher too.

“...alright then. I...er...how’ve you been, Legosi?”

The two canines did their best to ignore the cervid, casually flicking a flip-knife around like it was a pencil. His fur is so much like Louis’s, Legosi thought.

“I’ve been okay, you know, just...busy, with...life.”

Thud!

“If you want some time to fuck then you don’t have to tell me twice, just don’t get it on my bed or I’ll spill other bodily fluids from you both. Can’t guarantee that you’ll survive.” The deer pulled his knife out of the table and shoved past Legosi, slamming the door behind himself.

“How...how long has he been here? He’s already got a bed...I’ve not been gone for THAT long, have I?”

The pair sat down at the desk, Jack running his claw against the knife indent in the wood. He sighed quietly to himself. Legosi wondered why the cervid had such a sudden outburst like that, and why he was so inappropriate.

“You were gone for a month, give or take a few days. Nobody was using your bed and you weren’t coming back so Principal Gon decided to let...him...have your bed.”

“A month, huh...? Jeez...I’m sorry, Jack. I meant to come back an-“

“Cut the shit now, Legosi. What’s Louis done to you?”

His friends sudden passive-aggressive outburst caught him off guard and he almost choked on oxygen. He never expected to hear that from Jack.

“I-what?”

“I told him that if he ever hurts you again then I’d make sure he regrets it. So tell me, what’s he done?”

As angry and upset as he was with the cervid, Legosi could tell by the look in the Lab’s eyes that he was dead serious so he thought about what to say. It was almost...scary...to see such an innocent animal that he grew up with suddenly turn like that. Jack didn’t need to say what he would do, Legosi knew. (I think it was a death threat, I can’t remember.)

“W-well...he said that it was for my safety because he keeps getting caught up on stuff. Just this morning, he was taking part in a gunfight.”

Honesty is the best policy (always, even if it hurts. Lying will always end up hurting more, plus it’s just mean) so Legosi decided to go down that avenue and hope that Jack believed it.

“Oh, that’s what happened earlier. I was going through the Back Alley Market to find some cheap laptops and I heard gunfire.”

It may have been the same event, or one different but Jack believed the wolf nevertheless, thankfully. The two caught up together, by themselves. It was good for them to do this, it’d been forever since Legosi and Jack were alone like this. They spent a few hours talking about most things, although there were a few details that Legosi thought would be best unsaid. Legosi missed Jack, it was unlike them to go however long without talking. After a while, the pair had decided to retire to their bunks. It had been a tiring day for the wolf and he wanted to just lie down and sl-

“You’re not taking my bed.”

Legosi turned around, shirtless, to see the newer dorm room resident leaning against the door, scraping his claws against his knife.

“It was my bed first. It even says my name o-“

“Oh I’m sorry, my bad. Yeah I’ll let you have the bed WHEN I’M FUCKING DEAD.”

Being too tired to deal with this, Legosi simply waved his hand and muttered “whatever” before looking around the room. It seemed that all the beds were full so the canine went to a cupboard to get a blanket, yet as expected, there weren’t any in there either.

“Hey Jack, can-“ Legosi stopped talking the moment he heard there Labrador snoring gently. The angsty animal had already gotten into Legosi’s bed and pulled the curtains closed and for a moment, the wolf didn’t know what to do. Sleep on the floor? Sure, but it would be cold and it seemed like the new deer would probably stab him for being in the way should he want to get up during the night. He could go to Louis...no, he’s the reason why Legosi is here. Couch? Yeah, that seems like a good idea. Legosi grabbed a second blanket that Jack always kept draped over the end of his bed and walked to the green couch, getting himself undressed before lying down. Legosi noted a rucksack that said “Deacon”. He pulled his phone out from under the blanket and started typing to a certain individual.

Leg: Hey, you awake?

His thumb hovered over the send button as he hesitated, and then decided to delete the message before locking his phone and rolling onto his side, falling asleep quickly, but with a heavy heart.

Feeling the sadness growing, Louis watched as Legosi’s typing bubble disappeared without a message appearing. He knew that he wasn’t going to get a message from the wolf, so he turned some music on and lit a cigarette, getting himself ready for another one of his famed sleepless nights.

“When you go, would you have the guts to say...I don’t love you...like I did yesterday.”

(I Don’t Love You by My Chemical Romance...obviously).


	40. I Need To Say Something

I’m not sure where to start with this. I know that a lot of my readers are also readers of We’re Only Animals, another Beastars fanfiction by NilesTheWhiteTailedDeerQueer and Doopstory and I don’t want to say something but I need to. Stop being disrespectful to them. Nasty comments aren’t appreciated at any point and they are doing their best in WOA. Readers are actually lucky because WOA wasn’t meant to be uploaded so I urge you to show some damn respect to creators, artists and writers. You have no idea how much your comments can affect us. It’s hurtful, demeaning and we don’t need the negativity from you. If you don’t enjoy it, don’t spread hate because there’s too much of it in the world already. Just stop reading and scroll away. AMAZINGLY, that’s all you have to do. I’m not directing this at all of my readers because I’m sure that most of you are truly wonderful people...but those who like to spread hate and negativity...you know who you are. Niles is a good friend of mine and I care about them deeply so I’ll always do what I can to help them. Just stop being rude and nasty. Once again...you know who you are. Everyone else, I love you!


	41. Chapter Thirty Five

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> MERRY FUCKING CHRISTMAS!!! I hope your days have been filled with love, food, all the presents you want and happiness! Alternatively, if you don’t celebrate it then I truly hope that you’ve had the most wonderful timezone (as you all have individual time zones, it’s easier to say that). Have a LONG OVERDUE chapter today, with another one expected to be finished any day now. Don’t forget to come into my Discord to say hi to me, I don’t bite!
> 
> https://discord.gg/Xxs5KSW

ALTERNATIVE UNIVERSE CHAPTER BECAUSE WHY NOT?!

Rolling over onto his side, Louis opened his eyes and yawned, stretching.

“It’s bright outside today”, he spoke to himself as he pulled his tired body out of his bed. He trudged to his bathroom and turned the hot tap (faucet, I’m English so we call it a tap) on and splashed some water on his face, some of it soaking into his fur. What’s todays agenda...oh, that’s right. I need to allocate positions for the drama club. Let’s see, I left the list somewhere. Louis dried his face and walked into the living room of his apartment in search of a clipboard, which, thankfully, he didn’t misplace. The deer sat down on the couch and started reading through the names and positions, spinning a pen idly as he thought.

“Hm, Els...she’s a pretty good choreographer so I may mark her down for organising the kinetic section of the play. Aoba is decent on lighting, although that’s all he’s good for. The kid wants to go into acting properly...I’ll come back to him. I suppose I could have Bill down as a minor role, I don’t want him screwing up in front of the whole school. That won’t look good for me. Sheila, you can be the head choreographer and Els can be working with the outfits instead”, Louis scribbled down on the clipboard more, “Legosi can stay on lighting either alone or with Aoba, I’ll have to see how that goes. Tem can have a more secondary acting position alongside me, he knows how to handle himself. Riz can manage the technical stuff aaand...oh, that’s it. I’ll have to formally organise it in the office.” Louis looked around himself for a moment and sighed, “I’ve been talking to myself this whole time. Ugh.”

Standing up again, the cervid decided that he would shower and then grab something to eat on his way out the door. While in the shower, he carefully considered all of the drama club’s members and how vital their roles were. Louis also remembered that he needed to look at the scripts, if they arrived today. Some companies tend to be crappy at being on time, and that irritated the deer quite a lot. Once cleaned and dressed, he grabbed a box of chocolate carrot sticks out of the cupboard and stuffed them into his pocket before heading out the door.

Upon reaching the drama hall, Louis noticed a commotion outside. What the hell? Police, paramedics...the herbivores and carnivores staying away from each other...oh, oh no. Somebody’s been predated. The students around him would usually stop and stare at Louis for as long as they could but they simply glanced at him before turning back to their friends. Louis could feel two emotions in the atmosphere. The herbivores were scared and the carnivores were angry. Members from both groups were being spoken to by the police, asking for witnesses or any information. Louis heard footsteps and felt a hand being gently pressed on his shoulder and when he turned around, he was greeted by Principal Gon, who was wearing a smile for morale, but his eyes betrayed the sadness hidden within.

“Louis, I’m glad to see you safe.”

“Principal Gon, what’s going on? Please don’t tell me that my suspicions are correct.”

The Siberian Tiger nodded, almost seeming ashamed.

“I’m afraid so, Louis. Such a tragedy when this happens, a young life extinguished right when things were meant to be looking up. I’m not allowed to reveal the name of the student who was,” Gon lowered his voice, “murdered as their family don’t know yet. All I can say is...I’m sorry, Louis.” With a small and gentle pat on the deer’s shoulder, Gon turned away and disappeared into the school.

“Why did Gon apolog...oh, no.” It dawned on him that he knew the victim, but who? He didn’t feel sad for any animal in particular, but he was hit with a wave of melancholy as he thought about the animals’ family while he watched the coroners pull a gurney into a black ambulance. There was someone on that gurney that Louis knew, but he didn’t know who and he understood that whoever it was, this would be the last time Louis would see them. The deer started walking towards the black ambulance and approached a giraffe wearing an EMT uniform.

“I’m sorry dear, but I am going to have to ask you to step back.”

“I’m a friend of the victim. I’d like to say goodbye.”

The giraffe looked at Louis, her eyes glazed and sympathetic. She must have been new to the job...although this kind of event can have that effect on anybody.

“You have two minutes. This way, please.”

The two entered the back of the ambulance and the only thing that Louis could focus on was the black zipped up bag laid in front of him. Louis almost held his breath as he moved closer and sat down next to the body bag, looking at the EMT.

“Is it okay if I see their face? I’m no stranger to death, so it won’t freak me out. I just want to see them one last time.”

She hesitated for a few moments, looking at the bag and the deer. He wasn’t going to give up and she knew that. She looked around for a moment and made sure that no one else could see.

“I must warn you, your friend will not look as you remember them.”

Louis nodded and gently tugged on the zip, his heart in his throat. As the bag slowly opened, he noticed what looked like a damaged horn or a claw, then a lot of blood stained fur, or wool and he took a deep breath to steady himself, although even Louis knew that he could never be prepared for what he was about to see. The zip came down to just beneath the animals chin and the deer pulled a hand to his mouth as his eyes darted over the carnage that laid before him. There was so much blood, compared to the amount of flesh and wool missing. It looked like something out of a horror scene, Louis barely able to recognise the mangled corpse of his friend.

“Oh...Tem...I’m so sorry. You deserved better than this.” The cervid spoke softly and sadly, feeling sorrow for his friend and anger towards his killer. “I’ll find them buddy. I promise to leave flowers for you as much as I can, so your memory doesn’t wither away.”

He went silent, aware of the paramedic who was quietly writing. 

“I’m finished now. Thank you.”

The giraffe simply nodded and opened the door for Louis and the moment both his feet touched the ground, the door was closed and the vehicle started barrelling towards the nearest hospital, or morgue. The deer wiped his eyes as he watched his friend leave his sight for the last time, then decided to head inside before his anger got the better of him.

It took a couple of hours for the police to clear up most of the scene and then students started to attend their classes, albeit totally petrified. Louis was given the drama club as appreciation for last year’s performance of Adler. Once satisfied with the amount of classmates, the cervid thought that now would be a good time to address them.

“I’d like to say good morning, but it isn’t one. I am sure that you are all aware of what’s happened to one of our classmates here at Cherryton, and it truly is a tragedy. The victim was young and had so much going for him, not to mention what could have happened,” he glanced at Els “and we will be holding a candlelight vigil for him, with his parents permissions of course. I will be talking with Principal Gon about holding the ceremony in here, as he loved this place.”

A black and white feline interrupted Louis with a question.

“Was he a member of this group?”

“I’m afraid so.”

Quiet murmurs and gasps were heard and one asked what happened, clearly unaware.

“Last night, one of our classmates was murdered by a coward. We don’t know who the victim is but I’ll find them and I’m going to kill them.”

The door opened up and a gray wolf entered, walking slowly to a spot in the room where he would stand still but not directly look at anyone. Even though there were many carnivores in the room, having one more put the herbivores on edge even more, aside from Louis.

“You’re late.”

“O-oh, I’m sorry...there was a bug outside that stopped me from getting in.”

His voice was deep-ish yet he spoke lightly.

“A bug?! A bug stopped you from attending? Do you even know what’s happened today?”

“Yeah, I know. Poor Tem.”

Everyone’s face went white as snow, all apart from Els, who held her hand to her mouth and ran out of the hall as quickly as she could before she’d just break down crying in front of everyone. Louis glared at the wolf, angrily.

“You fucking moron! Office. Now!”

The deer went into the office and so did the canine and Louis slammed the door as hard as he could before sitting down. Louis rubbed his temples, just looking at the wolf pissed him off.

“First off, you’re late because of a bug. I want an explanation.”

Without saying anything, the wolf reached into his pocket and slowly pulled his hand out, revealing a considerably big tarantula. Louis wasn’t scared of spiders but even this one caught him off guard.

“Fuckin’, what the hell is even that?!”

“It’s a tarantula?” He seemed puzzled by the question but then put it back in his pocket. “I didn’t want someone else to hurt it, it’s only a small thing.” What a goddamn weirdo.

“Right...okay. Secondly, why did you tell everyone that it was Tem who was killed? You do realise that even his family are unaware as we speak?”

Being mindful of the tarantula, the wolf shuffled in his seat.

“I saw them outside, they told me who it was. I feel so bad for them, I’d hate for that to happen to me or one of my children. Tem didn’t deserve this...” he genuinely seemed upset by this. He also saved a spider from getting injured, so there’s no way that this guy is the killer. Still, can’t be sure.

“What’s your name, dog?”

He seemed a little offended, but didn’t say so. “M-my name is Legosi.”

“Show me your teeth, Legosi. And your claws while you’re at it.”

Legosi looked nervous. “M-my what? My teeth? Why do I need to show you my teeth and claws?”

“I want to see what a true carnivore has equipped. Show me.”

“I...I really don’t want to do that. It scares herbivores when a carnivore bares their fangs. I must be going now.”

He got up to leave and started heading for the door when Louis climbed to his feet and shoved the canine against a metal shelving unit with a thud.

“What are y-mmfh!”

As he spoke, Louis forced his fingers into the canines mouth, prying and holding his mouth open. He was letting out breaths in tiny huffs as he didn’t want to smell the scent of a deer up close. Louis peered into his mouth and looked for any traces of blood. It revolted him being this close to a carnivore, but he needed to find out. Suddenly, Louis pulled back and wiped his hand into a handkerchief while muttering something, then grabbed Legosi’s hand and paid close attention to his claws.

“You sharpen these often?”

“N-no, I cut them every day.”

“And yet they’re still so sharp. I bet it’s easy going through your food.”

Legosi pulled back, non-aggressively though.

“I suppose it is...what are you trying to say?”

Louis leaned in close to Legosi’s ear, close enough for them to both catch a strong scent from each other. “I’m watching you, Legosi. And set that damn spider free.” With that, the canine was gone and Louis was alone. He took a deep breath and steadied himself, discovering that his heart was beating faster than normal.

“Fucking carnivores.”

Louis sat down, lit a cigarette and started writing down ideas for his classmates’ vigil.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After class had finished, Legosi made his way to the cafeteria with Jack, his Labrador friend.

“...and then I told her that she can only do it if she actually paid attention in class. I don’t wanna sound rude but she just does not pay attention at all! She doesn’t take notes, she always has headphones in, I’ve never seen her actually do any class work...”

“Uh, one egg sandwich please...thank you...”

“...oh but you should have seen their faces. The way the group got silenced in an instant was just crazy...”

Legosi was trying to listen to his friend while he slowly chewed on his sandwich, but struggled to concentrate.

“Jack, I’m really sorry but that’s a lot of information for me to take in. I’m quite distracted and I don’t feel like now is a good time.”

The Labrador looked at him quizzically.

“What do you mean? Something happen, Legosi?”

Where was Jack today?

“Uhm...Tem?”

The smile that the dog always wore simply vanished and he looked down, sighing.

“Yeah...I know. I’ve just been trying to keep you from getting sad about it, I know that you two were friends.”

Legosi took another bite, a small one this time.

“I wouldn’t say we were friends, but Tem trusted me with a lot of things. Secrets, possessions, a lot of stuff really. I’m definitely going to miss him. He didn’t seem afraid of me, like, ever. Although earlier, Louis was quite forceful with me.” The moment he spoke those words, Jack’s eyes lit up.

“Oh, you get it Legosi!”

The wolf looked around, embarrassed by his friends rather loud outburst.

“Shut up, not like that! He forced his hand inside my mouth after pushing me against something, and he seemed really angry.”

“What? Why did he do that?”

Legosi finished off his sandwich with a small bite.

“I don’t know. I think he’s just angry about Tem and, well, look at me. I don’t get it.”

Jack looked a little confused, which showed that he didn’t understand Louis’ reasoning either. Maybe the deer was the only one who did.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


	42. Chapter Thirty Six

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE! I know I’m late but I hope you all had a wonderful time kicking 2020 out of our lives. Love you all, also I will be exploring the Alternate Universe story more, I lost all inspiration for Extinction within these chapters but I may dabble in it every now and again. This isn’t a particularly long chapter but I’ll make up for that. Also, join my Discord! The link is in every chapter as well as this one, right here ~>>> https://discord.gg/Xxs5KSW

Legosi yawned, rolling off the couch into a sitting position. His stomach grumbled, as it usually did so he grabbed his clothes and got dressed, thinking about what to have for breakfast.

“You’re up early. What is it, hunting season for you dogs?”

The wolf spun around to see the cervid he believed to be called Deacon sharpening his knife.

“If it was hunting season, then I’d be the one with the knife, don’t you think? Then again, I’m quite equipped to hunt without a weapon.”

Deacon simply glared at him.

“You’re all the fucking same.”

Bewildered, Legosi pulled on his shirt and thought of a response. “What do you mean?”

“That wasn’t an invitation to keep a conversation going.”

Luckily, the canines phone dinging was enough to save him from the awkwardness. He peeked at it and swiped on it, after seeing who texted him.

Prof: Good morning, Legosi. I trust that you’re well?

The faint clicking of the wolf’s claws on the screen was heard as he replied.

Leg: Good morning. I am well, thank you, yourself? 

He felt like he was writing out an email, with how formal he sounded. Deacon left, slamming the door behind him and the sudden noise startled Legosi.

Prof: I’m good, thanks. Don’t forget that classes start at 10 today, we also have a new member joining us. Heads up, he’s like Louis, a lot more angry though. Also, there’s a box outside your dorm, I need you to bring it to me.

Legosi peered over at the emo cervid, then back to his screen.

Leg: Already met him. See you at 10.

He looked at the clock. Twenty to ten, he needed to get a move on if he was going to arrive on time. The canine decided that he would shower later on so he made a quick snack and headed to his class, not forgetting the box. It felt heavy, yet light.

Upon entering his classroom, he saw everything almost completely normal again, aside from the cervid brooding moodily in the shadows, who locked eyes with Legosi the moment that the wolf stepped in. A few other animals smiled and waved towards Legosi, which made him smile.

“Oh, fucking hell, I can’t get away from you! You gonna start biting me next?”

Suddenly, a voice boomed throughout the hall.

“I’ll have NONE of that in my class! Apologise, now!”

Deacon scoffed and glared at the wolf, muttering an apology which was clearly faked.

“I’m sorry that you were faced with rudeness, Legosi. How are you doing today?”

Deacon went back to his brooding and Legosi rubbed his neck, aware of the silent classroom and the eyes on him.

“I’m doing good, thank you Professor.”

“Alright, I’m glad to hear that. Deacon, my office. Now, please! Everybody else, you know what you’re doing. Legosi, you’ll be with Pina and Bill today, you three get on well and I haven’t seen you complete any sort of task together yet.”

Sergio sat down at his desk and lit a cigarette, glancing over to the window to ensure that it was open and the deer soon walked in after and sat down heavily, irritated.

“Why am I here?”

The gazelle blew out some smoke and sighed.

“I won’t have you disrespecting your classmates. Do you honestly think that that kind of behaviour is acceptable?”

Deacon shuffled and put his foot on the Professor’s desk, who almost instantly shoved him off.

“Hey, what the fuck dude?”

“‘What the fuck dude’ yourself! You come in here, disrespect another animal in my presence, I might add and then you stick your fucking boots on my desk!” Wow, he really resembled Louis, tattoos and hairstyle aside. “You need to develop a better attitude towards your classmates and teachers, like myself.”

“Why are you sticking up for the dog anyway? He’ll eat you the mome-“

“You got a better chance of me taking that knife of yours and sticking it in your ass.”

Deacon pulled it out, in a cocky fashion and twiddled it between his fingers.

“Oh, you mean THIS knife? Good luck with that.”

“LEGOSI! COME IN HERE!”

The deer huffed and slumped back, knife ready. A moment later, the wolf came in and placed the box down before being asked to leave again.

“You said good luck, right? Why would that be?”

Deacon glanced at the box, slightly uncomfortable but not willing to back down. Sergio placed it out of view on his lap and started unwrapping it.

“I said that because if you fuck with me, I’ll kill you.”

“Ooh, threatening me? How classy. See, you think that you even have a shot against me and it’s funny.”

“Why the fuck is it funny?” The deer started becoming more uncomfortable now, quite nervous but also very angry, ready to fight.

“You think you have a shot against me, but I’ve got nineteen against you.”

With a heavy thud, the Professor slammed a handgun on the table, the barrel pointing towards Deacon, who...how can I put this?...shit himself. Not literally, figuratively, of course. He couldn’t take his eyes off the weapon.

“I’ll tell them that you have a gun!”

The Professor stubbed out his cigarette, annoyed.

“I didn’t even get to smoke most of that, but nobody would care if I smoked you. Principal Gon knows about this and so does the rest of the class. I also got this from an old friend as a gift. Completely untraceable, and look at this! It even has a silencer so I can kill you in your sleep. You sure that you still want to fight me, and threaten me with your little bitch of a child’s toy? Better yet, you want to fuck with my students, Legosi most importantly?”

The way that the Professor kept his smile throughout the whole duration of his sentences and didn’t seem slightly fazed scared Deacon more than he could say. The deer looked at the handgun again and swallowed, hard.

“N-no, sir. I’m sorry, sir.”

“That’s what I thought. Now go and play nice, I’ll know if you don’t.”

He didn’t need to say anything more, Deacon was out of his office in mere seconds and the Professor smirked to himself, placing the handgun back in the present box and set it in his drawer. It’s true, after Louis’ kidnapping and everything that happened since, he approached Principal Gon about having a weapon for safety. While Gon said that it wasn’t really acceptable, Sergio argued that neither is the kidnapping and killing of their students. Once he mentioned Legosi and Louis, Gon softened up and agreed with it, just warning Sergio to be careful.

“So, why were you crying when we last saw you?”

Pina punched Bill’s arm, playfully but hard enough to get a point across.

“Billy! Don’t be rude. Sorry Legosi, how are you feeling today?” Pina obviously knew. He didn’t even need to be told. Legosi was upset, and Louis wasn’t around, and he didn’t turn up today. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist...aside from Bill’s case.

Legosi lowered his voice, not wanting other animals to hear him. “Not really great, to be honest. Did you guys enjoy your date?”

“Oh yeah! Me and Pina went to get some food and then we fucked, that was great!”

THWACK!!

“Please don’t fucking shout that out! People might hear.”

Pina was right. Everyone was staring at them, even Deacon. After a couple of moments, everybody went back to their own business, not that it saved the couple any embarrassment.

“Sorry baby.”

The trio started working on lighting as it was always Legosi’s job, and Kai wasn’t in today so he needed extra help. The Professor won’t mind.

“You guys had a nice day together though, right? I mean...well...”

“Yeah, we did. It’s alright, I know what you’re getting at dude. You hear anything from...?”

Legosi sighed sadly.

“No, nothing. I guess that’s all over now.”

“You and Louis broke up?”

THWACK!!

“Sorry!”

Legosi’s silence said it all, and his mood dropped pretty quickly. Pina had a quick idea to cheer him up.

“YO PROFESSOR, US THREE HAVE SHIT TO DO! BACK LATER!”

A voice came from the office.

“BE CAREFUL LADS!”

The trio climbed down the ladder and left the room, Pina taking Legosi by the paw. Bill didn’t mind, after dropping a bombshell like that loudly to everyone when it was clearly between Pina and Legosi, he felt that he owed Legosi. But what did Pina have planned?


	43. Chapter Thirty Seven

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 4K hits. Holy shit...I’m totally speechless.
> 
> https://discord.gg/Xxs5KSW

Waking up to a blaring alarm clock closer to his bed than he would have liked, Louis reached over and slapped his hand against the top to turn it off, although it didn’t, so he tried again. Then again, and again. He gave up and tore the plug out of the socket, sighing at the final silence that settled in his room. The rain outside hammered against the window, echoing lightly. Louis picked up his phone and unlocked it, half hoping to see a message from Legosi, but was disheartened at the lack of contact. Maybe he should message the wolf...but what would he say? ‘Sorry for breaking your heart’? The deer thought back to Jack’s threat of hurting Legosi and shuddered. Of course, the polite and quiet ones are the fucking scariest ones. Louis stretched and sniffed the air, then his arm, sighing again.

“I need to have a fucking shower.” He got up and walked into the bathroom, turning the shower on. Luckily he slept naked so he didn’t need to undress himself and once the water was warm, he put some music on. He wanted something tragic, but a bop nonetheless so he found Shark Smile by a band he recently discovered before stepping under the hot water torrent. Louis covered his ear, or lack of, while he washed his fur and face, humming quietly to the music.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“This is your new home, Number Four. I might start calling you Shi, it’s easier to say.”

“...”

“You don’t talk much. If I recall, you don’t know how to talk, do you?”

Louis shook his head, hesitantly. Oguma sighed.

“We’re going to need to improve that if you’re to become a Beastar, or if you’re at least going to take over my conglomerate business.”

He used words that the younger buck didn’t understand, and he half knew that. Calling a black and white panda over, he gave Louis a glass of water. The child drank it greedily, appearing to be very thirsty although Oguma didn’t comment on that.

“This is Leo, and he’s going to be your best friend. If there’s anything that I’m not around to help with, you can always count on Leo. Can you say Leo?”

The very young panda smiled softly at Louis, so the deer took a deep breath.

“L...Lo...Lou?”

“No, Leo. Like...Lllleeeeeoo. You try it.”

“Loo!”

The panda had to cover his mouth to stop himself from giggling, and Oguma noticed that.

“We’ll get there sir, don’t worry. Me and Louis are gonna be good friends.”

Oguma nodded. “That’s what I like to hear. Dedication, Shi. It’ll get you everywhere. Leo, please make sure that Shi has something to eat.” He was calling Louis Shi a lot now. Leo turned around and took a tray off a table, which was obscured until now and Louis felt his heart jump in his throat, pulling back. The panda took the lid off, revealing some dark rectangular items and Louis stared at it, confused.

“They’re all yours, Louis!” said the panda with a warm smile, moving the tray lower to Louis’ height, which wasn’t far off Leo himself. The young cervid looked at them more before grabbing his right antler. Before anyone could even process what was happening, Louis screamed in pain and a loud snap filled the room. Oguma stared at him, wide eyed as the child shakily held out his bloody antler, crying silently save a couple of sniffles with crimson running down his face, staining his fur. Leo was gobsmacked, utterly and completely.

“P...pa-pa-pa...p-paymm...paymmm!” It was clear that he was struggling to communicate, although it was clear what he wanted to say. Oguma grabbed the tray off Leo and set it down immediately.

“Medkit, now! Oh, Shi...”

Louis shakily held his bloody antler up, still trying to pay for the food while the panda bolted out of the room. He didn’t know what was happening, so he began to cry more. Oguma reached a hand out to him, causing the small deer to pull back, frightened.

“Hey, calm down, Shi. It’s okay. LEO?! HURRY UP!”

Moments later, Leo returned holding a green and red box which he put onto the table. He glanced at the blood and took a few steadying breaths before getting to work.

“Louis, buddy? Can you come and sit down over here please?”

Louis hesitantly obliged, climbing onto a chair, antler in hand. He stared at it, seemingly in shock. Oguma sat down too, taking the antler off Louis while Leo fiddled with some medical supplies.

“Thankfully it’s not too bad, nothing that a clean and a bandage won’t fix. Let’s see, gauze...”

“...s-sowwy...p-paym...” He reached up to grab his other antler but Leo grabbed his hand, placing it on Louis’ thigh.

“Keep that there for me, okay?”

Meanwhile, Oguma was simply dumbfounded. He made the connection, and by Louis trying to repeat his action for making a mistake, it was simply confirmed.

“You thought that you needed to pay for that, didn’t you?”

“...”

“Is that what they did to you in there? Every time you wanted something, you had to give an antler...?”

Looking down, Louis nodded and then pointed to the blood on his face.

“A-and th...thhhh...thisss.”

Oguma and Leo exchanged glances, both feeling very shocked and empathetic towards Louis. He’d been treated so much worse than they thought, the kid believed he needed to pay with blood if he just wanted to fucking eat...after about ten minutes of wound cleaning, Leo clipped the case shut again. Louis looked really sad.

“S...sowwy...” Leo pulled him into a hug, being careful.

“Hey hey, it’s okay. No harm done, hm? Here, try one of these. It’s okay, I promise.” His soft smile and demeanour made Louis trust Leo straight away after that and he picked one of the dark items up, biting into it with a small crunch. He looked at it, chewing and saw that something orange was inside.

“Chocolate carrot sticks, made them myself!” said Leo, rather proudly. “There, you feeling better now?”

It still hurt, but Louis nodded. He felt better, which seemed to have distracted him by the pain. No, he didn’t feel better. He felt comfort, and that was all he needed. Oguma knelt down next to the younger buck, who was happily munching on the chocolate carrots, dark smudges on his fingers and fur around his mouth.

“You don’t ever need to pay for anything in that way ever again. You’re going to be alright, Louis.” For the first time, Louis smiled.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A knock at the door snapped Louis out of his trance, and he pulled his hand away from his torn ear, turning the shower off. A moment later, the door opened and Leo walked in.

“Lou? You okay? I knocked a lot but you didn’t answer.”

Louis, being completely bare in the shower quickly covered himself, turning red.

“Can you get out, Leo?”

The panda responded by laughing. “Lou, I’ve been taking care of you since you came here. What, don’t remember how many times I bathed you? Nothing I haven’t already seen.” Louis hesitantly moved his hand away, trying not to look at Leo.

“What did you come in for?” Leo grabbed a towel and moved over towards the shower, holding it out by the corners.

“I’m your butler, aren’t I? Simply doing my job, sir.” Louis chuckled lightly as he stepped against the towel, tying it around his waist. “I also came in because I noticed that you haven’t left your room since the incident. Is there anything I can do for you?”

Louis brushed some wet fur out of his face, shaking his head.

“I don’t think there is, I’m pretty capable of doing everything for myself.”

Leo laughed, “says the deer who used to ask me to cut his sandwiches...two years ago.”

“I like how you do it!” Louis hit back, although he knew that he wouldn’t win against the panda. “Tell you what, if there’s anything that needs doing, we can both do it. It’s my mess, or whatever it would be so it’s unfair to leave it to you, butler or not. Just give me some time t-“

Within half a second, Louis’ towel was off his body and out the bathroom window before he even realised what happened. He didn’t even think to cover himself.

“What the fuck, Leo?!”

The butler, rather sheepishly, lowered his head.

“There was a big spider on it, and I know you don’t like spiders.” The moment he heard the word ‘spider’, Louis felt his fur bristle up and he calmed towards Leo.

“Oh...I’m so sorry, Leo. I didn’t know. Thanks for doing that, although I’m surprised you remembered. And PLEASE give me some forewarning before suddenly stripping me.” The pair shuddered.

“Spiders...ew. Of course, Louis. My apologies.”

After half an hour, Louis had gotten himself dressed, with thanks to Leo picking out the clothes for him.

“I can dress myself, you know.”

“Butler.”

Louis laughed for a few seconds, “you going to use that all the time?”

Leo smiled widely, grabbing a cup of coffee off a tray he brought in, passing it to Louis. “Butler. So, where’s your wolf friend?”

Louis took the cup, sipping the dark coffee.

“Legosi isn’t here at the moment, he went back to school.”

“That’s a shame, you two are really cute together.”

Staring at Leo in surprise and shock, Louis put the cup down. “Huh?!”

“What do you mean, ‘huh’? Oguma hasn’t noticed but I cleaned your sheets while you were attending business, doesn’t take a scientist. In my case, only takes a butler.” Louis’ face turned extremely red and started apologising profusely.

“No no it’s okay, don’t worry! I mean, it’s only natural, right? Well...carnivore and a herbivore..., but it’s whatever! As long as you’re happy, that’s all that’s important, Louis, and it definitely seemed that you were happy.” The deer had no words, feeling a range of emotions come over him.

“So...you’re not weirded out by it?”

Leo chuckled, “No, not at all! Like I said, it’s natural, plus I’m a male too so I can understand that things can get messy sometimes. Don’t feel embarrassed about it. But yeah, is he going to be coming back?”

Louis looked down, sadly now.

“No, he won’t be. I called it off with him. After what happened during my...meeting, I realised how much he could suffer because of me and he’s already been through SO much because of me, I guess I’m just tired of being scared that he’ll get hurt.”

“I see. Well, have you asked him to put himself in danger for you?”

“No, I haven’t. I don’t want him to do that.”

“If he’s doing it off his own back, then he wants to protect you, Louis. He wants to be with you and values you over his own safety. I mean, don’t take my word for gospel but I think he loves you.”

Taking a moment to think about it, Louis paused entirely.

“I love him too, but that’s why I don’t want him being around me.”

“Louis, that’s quite selfish.”

The deer lifted his coffee cup to his lips, stopping as Leo spoke.

“Look, I’m going to speak out of order here but it isn’t fair for you to completely dismiss how he feels in regard to your own wants. I understand that you want to protect him, but he wants to protect you and you told me he loves you, and you love him. Take into account his feelings and consider what he wants.”

“You’re right...that was out of order.”

With that, Leo stood up and grabbed everything he needed to take out of the room. Louis watched him open the door and push the trolley (cart) into the hallway.

“Wait, Leo-“

“Breakfast is at ten, don’t be late.”

The door slamming and Leo’s tone of voice was enough to tell Louis that he messed up once again.

“Leo...Legosi, I’m sorry.”


End file.
